Ms. DiLauro is one of  Falls Church High School’s beloved English teachers. This  2016-2017 school year will be her second with Falls Church,  but she has already left her mark with many of her students. Matthew Nguyen (11) was one of  the sophomores last year lucky enough to have Ms. DiLauro as an English teacher. When asked about her, he said, “She is a great  teacher who is very enthusiastic  about her work. She cares for her students and wants them to excel.  She is awesome!” Matthew is not   alone in his appreciation for Ms. DiLauro’s kindness and passion.  

 Another former student of hers,  Kevin Van (11), claims, “Ms. DiLauro is the reason I passed 10th grade. English has always been my toughest subject because it is my second language. If it weren’t  for her help, I don’t think I could have done it.”

Ms. DiLauro didn’t always know she wanted to be a  teacher. After going to Penn State for her undergraduate degree, she worked at an investment bank and as a pharmaceutical vendor.Working at these places, Ms. DiLauro realized that she didn’t like  the office setting and preferred to  create her own structure. That’s when she decided to go back to  school to and get a Master’s degree in secondary education. She started teaching two years ago and   found that she really enjoyed it. One of the parts she loves the most  about teaching is “getting to know  the students and helping them  achieve their goals in writing and reading.”

She dedicates herself to  helping her students and is always there to help after school. Not only does she enjoy helping her students, she likes seeing students help each other. She structures her  classes so that when students need help, their peers can help them.

While Ms. DiLauro pushes her stu-dents to be the best they can be, she  isn’t a teacher you’ll likely find giving hours and hours of homework  to her students. When asked about it, she said, “I think homework is important to reinforce lessons, but  I also think homework should be  manageable because we’re all striving for a nice school-life balance.”         

If you get Ms. DiLauro for English, you are one lucky student.