My name is Heather Cates and this is my 16th year in education.  I taught for 15 years in K-2 classrooms and I am excited to be serving VPA as the Literacy Reading Specialist.  I have a BA in Elementary Education from The University of Alabama, a MA as a Reading Specialist from UAB, and I am a National Board Certified Teacher in Early Middle Literacy.  

I have been married to my husband, Jonny, for 13 years and we live in Trussville.  We have 2 sweet girls; Annie, who is 10 and in the 4th grade and Olivia, who is 8 and is in the 3rd grade.  When I am not at school, you can find me taking my girls to the dance studio and to play practice at ACTA.  We love spending time with our friends and family, volunteering at church, and travelling to the beach.  

If there is any way that I can assist you, please feel free to reach out heather.cates@sccboe.org.