Influenced by her father and brother, who were both very much involved in education, Joy Ann Dyer-Raffler is a retired special education diagnostician and art teacher who taught at the Tucson Unified School District in Arizona for 35 years. At the inception of her career in 1970, she served as an art teacher for five years before moving onto the world of special education. She was a special education teacher from 1975 to 1989 before becoming a special education diagnostician from 1989 to 2003. At the conclusion of her career in 2005, she was a teacher of exceptional education for two years.
Ms. Dyer-Raffler is certified in special education, learning disabilities, emotional handicaps and art education. Among the notable highlights of her career, she cites becoming an educator as her crowning achievement. She is especially proud of the degrees she has earned, including the most recent degree in special education, because of her commitment to helping children with disabilities and behavioral problems. She has also always enjoyed teaching children and guiding them on a path toward lifelong learning.
Maintaining affiliation with the Arizona Education Association to remain abreast of developments in her industry, Ms. Dyer-Raffler recalls how rewarding her career was, as students would often keep in touch with her long after they graduated. Civically involved as well, she served as a den mother for the Cub Scouts of America in Raleigh, North Carolina, from 1968 to 1969. In light of her exceptional undertakings, Ms. Dyer-Raffler was a grantee of the Tucson Unified School District in 1977. Happily married to the late John William Raffler for several years, she is the proud mother of one son, Keith. In her spare time, she enjoys painting, skiing, bird watching, playing tennis, running and weightlifting.
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