After exploring a variety of interests in college like music, English and math, Comprehensive Service Site (CSS) Department Chair Amanda Spangrud landed in special education. She was drawn to the field because she enjoys the puzzle of teaching special education. 

“A special education teacher is really a puzzle solver and they try to help unlock how students learn and how they can be successful in different ways,” Spangrud said. 

Spangrud transitioned from being part of the central office of Fairfax County Public Schools, where she was on a team who went to other schools to assist new teachers and department chairs, to becoming the department chair of the special education program at Chantilly High School. 

“It’s very different because before I would go to the schools for an hour or two and work with the teachers or the department, but then I’d go home, or I’d go to the next school, or I would only come once a week,” Spangrud said. 

Before she began her journey through the special education department, Spangrud was on the path to become a music teacher and later an English teacher because of her love for reading. Spangrud is still interested in returning as an English teacher in the future, as she enjoys interacting with students in the classroom where she can help them learn.

“I could see myself teaching and being in the classroom somewhere down the line,” Spangrud said. “But when I was in the classroom more recently I was a math teacher.”

Spangrud noted the comparison between teaching and her role in the special education program. While teachers lead a classroom, she interacts with teachers and students outside of the classroom. In the past, she was a middle school algebra teacher, so she still uses her teaching skills when working with children.

“It’s different being in one building because it becomes your community whereas before I was  kind of popping into other people’s communities,” Spangrud said. “Now, I have my own school community.”