Hi, I'm Carmen Papen and am 21 years
old. I attend the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse where I'm a Senior
majoring in Elementary Education with a minor in Spanish. I'm originally
from Brookfield, Wisconsin where I lived with my parents and brother, Charlie.
My brother is also in college and is a Sophmore at University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Besides going to school to be a teacher,
I work at Chileda, which is an institute that homes children with severe degrees
of autism and other developmental disabilities. Because a majority
of the residents are non-verbal or deaf, it has been necessary for me to
learn sign language and I use it regularly throughout my day of work.
I have worked there over a year and a half and absolutely love working there.
It has been an excellent learning experience thus far.
This is a picture of a resident that I work with at Chileda.
