Joan M. Arasteh

Joan M. Arasteh is a magna cum laude graduate of West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Science in Social Work and minors in English and Psychology; as well as teaching certifications in Secondary English, Secondary Reading, Secondary Language Arts, and English as a Second Language grades 6-12.

Joan taught in Houston’s inner city at a 95% minority middle school for five years before moving to Katy ISD, a suburb of Houston. She has taught students from middle school age to high school to adult education and from ESL to PreAP to GED.

She serves as the Dropout Prevention, Intervention and Recovery Coordinator in Katy ISD (recognized as a Texas Education Agency Best Practices Resource in Dropout Recovery practices) working to recover and/or prevent dropouts. Joan initiated and has led the district program (this field project), emphasizing a systematic approach to personalized services. The two can coexist.