SantanElementary School

Classroom Teacher

My name is Leticia Velarde, or Ms. Tish to my pre-kindergarten students.  I have been teaching for 26 years. I am Navajo from New Mexico. I love teaching here at CUSD and here at Santan Elementary. I am a resident of Chandler and have been in our great state of Arizona for more than 30 years. I am married with 3 adult children and have grandkids. I hold an M.Ed.’s in Special Education and Special Ed. Early Childhood as well as a B.A. in Education. I am so very honored to be your child’s classroom teacher and I feel that we are going to have a great school year.

Staff

My name is Mrs. Amanda Bradshaw Baldenegro, or Mrs. Mandy. I have been with Santan Elementary for 5.5 years. I am married and have two wonderful children. I am from Arizona and have lived in Chandler most of my life. I studied business and hold both an associate and a bachelor’s degree. I volunteered as a Girl Scout leader for over 7 years. I love working in early education and I am very excited to work with your child this year.  I enjoy spending time with my friends and family and living life to its fullest. I enjoy crafting and creating fun crafts. I love exploring local landmarks. We are going to have an amazing year and can’t wait for all the fun things we have planned.

My name is Ariane Hiremath, or Ms. Ariane.  I am married with 2 daughters, who keep me very busy with their various activities. I have 2 dogs a cockapoo and a poodle mix.  I love doing craft projects, traveling and being outdoors with my family.    I’ve been working in early education for 9 years.  This is my second year with CUSD and Santan Elementary.  I love working with children and seeing their eyes light up when they discover something new.   I have studied radiography and I am a licensed radiographer.  I was a clinical radiography instructor and a multi modality technologist, prior to transitioning to early education.  I can’t wait to spend the next year learning and growing with your child!