Charles Jones

Former Spanish Teacher (2009-2015)

Mountain Ridge High School
22800 N. 67th Ave.
Glendale, AZ 85310
November 4, 2015
To Whom It May Concern:
It is with great pleasure that I write this letter of recommendation for Kiley Slater. I met Kiley
over three years ago in my Spanish 1-2 class. Almost immediately, she stood out from among her
peers due to her mastery of the content and her desire to learn. She excelled throughout the year
and was one of my best students. I was privileged (and excited) to teach Kiley again her junior
year in Spanish 5-6 Honors. After teaching her in Spanish 1-2 and keeping in touch with her
during her sophomore year, I knew she would do well. She exceeded my expectations and
continued her excellence in the classroom. She produced assignments that not only met the
criteria, but demonstrated creativity with the language, which is something that is not common at
the high school level. It was evident that she had embraced the challenge of learning a foreign
language.
As I taught her those two years, Kiley continually excelled in the classroom and enjoyed
learning. The first occurrence I can recall of this was her choosing her Spanish name of Reina the
second week of school. Choosing a Spanish name was something many of my students did, but
rarely did they continue using it. Kiley, however, wrote it on all of her papers and made sure I
addressed her by it from there on out. It is something she even continued in her Spanish 3-4 and
AP Spanish classes despite having teachers other than myself. Though small, this was evidence
of her desire to treat the language as authentically as possible so she could learn it in a more
relevant way. Another example of her love of the subject is her desire to travel and study abroad.
She has mentioned multiple times that she desires to one day study abroad and use the language
in an authentic setting. It is my hope that she is able to realize this dream and further expand her
understanding of the language and culture. But in the meantime, as she studies and works in
Phoenix, her use of Spanish both in and out of the classroom is evidence of her desire to continue
to enhance her knowledge and grasp of the language.
One of Kiley's most important characteristics that sets apart from her peers is her ability to be
well-rounded while excelling in academics. I taught hundreds of honors students in my career
and many of them are excellent students, but lack extracurricular involvement. Throughout her
high school career, Kiley has balanced an intense academic schedule with an active involvement
in extracurriculars. She is a part of National Honor Society as well as Interact Club and has had
the opportunity to serve her community through them. In these clubs, she has helped serve the
Mountain Ridge High School community as well as the Phoenix community as a whole. At
Mountain Ridge, she was part of a group of students selected by administration to prepare
thousands of iPads for student use. She also has helped organize fundraisers for students who had
experienced grave medical difficulties. This year especially, she has spent time during and after
the school day tutoring younger students in Spanish and various other subjects. Outside of her
school, she has served at local elementary schools' holiday festivals and has also volunteered at
the local food bank, helped paint homes in disrepair, and served at the animal shelter. It is in

these volunteer opportunities that she developed her desire to become a biomedical engineer so
she can continue giving back on a larger scale in the future. She has done all this while working a
part time job the last few years as well as leading the soprano section in the school's choir.
As stated above, I am privileged to have been asked by Kiley to write this letter. She is one of
the best students I have ever taught, both academically and personally, and I am eager to see her
continue her success in the future. She will be an extremely valuable addition to any educational
institution and I am confident that her peers, instructors, and mentors will all be delighted to
know her and work with her. She is an outstanding, extremely mature young lady who will go
above and beyond the expectations set before her. Her determination to succeed is evident in all
she does, yet she treats her fellow students with kindness and her instructors with respect. She is
a wonderful young woman and will excel no matter the environment. I am thankful to know her
and to have taught her. I am honored to recommend her for your institution.
If you have any questions or need anything further, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Charles Jones
Former Spanish Teacher (2009-2015)
Mountain Ridge High School
(623) 521-7011
CharlesBJonesRealty@gmail.com