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Ponte, 48, joined the Roosevelt staff to work in the district she grew up in before moving to Towaco. Ponte attended Jefferson School in Hawthorne when it was kindergarten through eighth grade.
"It's home to me," Ponte said of Hawthorne. "All the teachers are really dedicated and the kids love to come to school. The kids even get upset [before] the weekend because they love coming to school."
Ponte graduated from Montclair State University and received her master's degree at Fairleigh Dickinson. She spent time as a student-teacher in Hawthorne before landing her full-time spot with kindergartners.
The educator said she expands her lessons beyond her own classroom. She works with a tutoring service and for educational videos, plus visits other districts to talk about improving reading skills with students.
"I love teaching," she said. "I love to get up and go to school every day."
Much has changed for kindergarten classes since Ponte started her career, she said. The lessons are more rigorous, which she said is a positive change.
Hawthorne also had half-day kindergarten when she started before switching to full-day around 2002.
Her classroom also no longer has a chalkboard, instead using an interactive whiteboard.
During her tenure, Ponte received the Governor's Teacher Recognition Award in 1994, 1995, 2003 and 2010, plus the Hawthorne Teacher of the Year honor in 2013.
One of her career highlights came from a young student with select mutism. Ponte said the girl wouldn't speak at first, but by the end of the year she finally opened up to her teacher.
"I'll never forget it," Ponte said. "I was crying that day. It was like the best present in my life."
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