Azaria Hernandez has been the behavior manager at Langford Elementary School for seven years. In her role, she creates bonds with students, helps them develop strategies and skills for handling emotions, and makes sure they're ready to learn.
“Ms. Hernandez is such a key team member here at Langford Elementary,” said Langford Principal Cyndi Callahan. “She knows each of our students and staff and works to set up a learning environment that is student-centered and really positive.”
Principal Callahan says Hernandez sets that positive tone for the day from the moment students get off the bus and enter the building. After welcoming students to school, she spends the day checking in and connecting with them to ensure they are ready and able to engage with learning. She may do short visits with students who are having difficulty and she works with them to employ strategies and skills get them back on track.
“She's always looking for solutions. She's looking to see how can we make your day better so that you can be as great of a learner as you can be at Langford,” said Callahan. “She has a lot of skills and strategies that are effective with our students K-5, and our students really gravitate toward her. They want to check in with her. She just brings that positivity and supports that learning is the most important thing at Langford.”
Learn more about Azardia Hernandez in the Q&A below.
What brought you to your role as behavior manager at Langford?
Hernandez: I’ve been here for about seven years now, I think, doing the job. I had a friend who was working at Woodland, and he told me I should apply, so I applied for Woodland. They ended up putting me as a sub for the district, and I began as that. I subbed here for a month as a long-term sub. Then I left, which I was very sad about, and then a week later I received a call that the other guy put his two weeks in. They were like, “Are you going to come back?”, and I was like, “Absolutely.” And I’ve been here ever since and I love it.
What does your role entail?
Hernandez: I love that I get to talk to all of the students in the school. I love being a behavior manager for the building because I do get to see everything and I get to deal with all of the children. So basically, what I do is I respond to calls, when necessary, if a student's having a hard time. I help them control their emotions, deal with any situation that they're having.
I also walk around the school, walk around the classrooms, kind of sit and sometimes hang out, you know, make it known that I'm here in case the kids need any help. I don't only deal with behaviors, I also try to help the kids out when they're sad or when they're upset about anything. It doesn't matter what it is. I am pretty familiar with a lot of my students, so it's very nice.
What is your goal in your role? What are you trying to do every day at Langford?
Hernandez: I just want to be able to help these children control their emotions, not only for situations here, but my goal is to help them control their emotions outside of here as well. You know, a lot of these kids have a hard time using those skills. A lot of them don't have the skills. So just being able to teach them those skills and seeing them use them, it's amazing. I've had students where I've had them since kindergarten and then all the way through fifth grade, and sometimes it takes us a few years. But by the time they're in fifth grade, I see them using those skills and it's amazing.
What do you think it is about you or your personality that makes you well-suited for this role?
Hernandez: I think that I am very level headed, and I am very much about looking for the best interests of the child and creating these relationships. So, I don't feel like I am only responding to get them to fix their emotions, I feel like I am also there to create a bond. I really sincerely try creating a bond with all of my kids, especially those that have a harder time with managing their behaviors or managing their feelings. Just being able to know that they can come looking for me, or that they can be like, “You know, I'm having a hard time, and Ms. Hernandez shows up, and she's going to help me.” And they're okay with that, and they're happy to see me, that makes my heart so happy.”
Seven years into this job, what keeps you coming to work every day? What do you love most about your job?
Hernandez: I love it, I do. I love all of it. I work with a great team, so that makes things even better when you have a great team of people working with you. It's amazing what we can do for these kids.
But probably my most favorite thing is when I see a kid using those skills. From going from not knowing any skills and misbehaving and having all these outbursts to then seeing a child go into this step where they're able to use those skills and they're able to calm themselves or they're able to walk away from certain situations and stuff like that. It's an amazing thing to see.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.