Ria Fresnoza, Director of Academics
Ria Fresnoza, middle school religion and English language arts teacher at St. Peter’s Catholic School in San Francisco’s Mission District, will serve as the school’s Director of Academics starting in August.
A veteran educator, Fresnoza has been in the classroom for over a decade specializing in English language arts instruction. She grew up in San Francisco and has a degree in English from the University of California at Davis. This summer, she will begin studies for her Master’s in Catholic Educational Leadership at the University of San Francisco.
For the last six years, she has been teaching at St. Peter’s on the middle school faculty, teaching religion and English language arts. She also helps to prepare students for the sacrament of Confirmation. She has a passion for giving young people an outlet to express themselves through their writing and art and when she's not in the classroom, she enjoys spending time with her husband and their young son hiking and exploring the Bay Area and beyond.
Prior to working at St. Peter’s, Fresnoza worked at Riverview Middle School in Bay Point, California, a Title One public school. At Riverview, she taught 6th-8th grade language arts to both remedial and advanced literacy students, worked with ELD and sheltered English students who were learning English as a new language, and also led mainstream special education inclusion classes. She was elected to serve on the school’s Transformational Leadership Committee for four years, where she helped implement systemic programs for school improvement, such as PLC’s, Response to Intervention, Instructional Rounds, and Culturally Responsive Teaching. She was recognized by colleagues and school leaders not only for her strong mastery of the curriculum, but also for her excellent classroom management and positive relationship with students and colleagues.
Fresnoza’s experience as a teacher-leader at Riverview prepared her to step into a similar role during the past two school years at St. Peter’s. She has generously served as an English Language Arts instructional coach for St. Peter’s and other nearby Catholic schools, and has led the St. Peter’s faculty to collaborate in Professional Learning Communities. This collaboration focuses on using data to ensure that all students are learning and growing.
As Director of Academics, Fresnoza will coach and support teachers to nurture their professional development, manage the process of academic reporting and recording, collaborate with teacher leaders at neighboring schools to plan and facilitate professional development meetings, coordinate all school-wide assessments and standardized testing, and provide support in fulfilling school accreditation requirements.
Fresnoza says that she is, “excited to interact more with all of the teachers and staff and to learn from their instructional practices and work as educators and give them the support they need. I’m also excited to implement new ideas and to make a positive impact on the school as I work with Mrs. Jimenez, the new principal, and Mr. Suarez, the Director of School Culture and Community Life.”
Full of innovative ideas, Fresnoza emphasizes the importance of “exhibiting the exemplary student work that is happening in the classrooms and recognizing academic growth and achievement as we continue to make student learning front and center here at St. Peter’s.”
