When students walk through the doors of On Track Academy in Spokane, they are often carrying burdens no young person should have to face. Some have struggled in traditional schools. Others are coping with poverty, food insecurity, or challenges at home. Yet for each of them, there is someone waiting with compassion, resourcefulness, and belief in their potential: paraeducator and PLUS Coordinator Lori Beaty.

This year, Beaty has been honored as the 2025 Regional Classified School Employee of the Year for NEWESD 101, a recognition that shines a light on her commitment to students who need it most.

Beaty describes relationship-building as the most important part of her job. Her office is in the center of the building, visible to every student and family who walks in. “Being visible helps,” she says. “You don’t know what students are carrying, but if you’re there, if you’re consistent, you can start building that trust.”

Her approach is not only about encouragement but about helping students discover pathways forward. Through the PLUS Program, she supports juniors and seniors as they develop personal learning plans, explore careers, secure internships, and practice workplace skills. As her supervisor shared in the nomination packet, “Lori is responsible for some truly amazing student experiences and outcomes. She goes well above and beyond the call of her job, consistently working tirelessly to provide meaningful opportunities for students.”

One of Beaty’s most powerful initiatives has been the Wellness Zone, a credit-bearing course and collaboration with the University of Washington and Northeast Community Center. The project began as a student survey but quickly grew into a platform where youth could express their struggles and solutions through art, writing, and advocacy.

Her students have shared mental health challenges through sculpture and tapestry, launched food drives, and presented wellness research at City Hall, before the Spokane City Council, and at the Washington State Senate. They have testified on issues from suicide prevention to food insecurity, learning first-hand how their voices can shape policy and presented a 75-minute session at the Spokane Regional Domestic Violence Coalition's End the Violence Conference to therapists, caseworkers and psychologists. “The most rewarding part is seeing students realize they can make a difference,” Beaty reflects. “Finding the right outlet to be heard and creating change is incredibly powerful.”

Colleagues describe Beaty’s “superpower” as pushing community in, connecting students with resources they might never otherwise access. Whether it is arranging free Wi-Fi for families, organizing mobile health clinics, or ensuring students have warm clothing, she consistently looks for ways to remove barriers. She has also created a schoolwide bulletin board filled with vetted resources: job postings, FAFSA help, counseling services, and community events. “It’s all there so students can focus on learning and life’s next steps,” says Jene Ray, director of The ZONE at Northeast Community Center.

Her impact extends beyond school walls. She helped establish an ongoing perishable food distribution program at On Track, facilitated by students, that now provides fresh produce to neighborhood families.

Beaty’s work often merges student learning with community betterment. Nowhere is this more visible than in On Track Academy’s tree-planting efforts. Partnering with the City of Spokane’s Urban Forestry Department, the Arbor Day Foundation, and local nonprofits, OTA students have planted trees throughout northeast Spokane, an area with far less tree canopy than other parts of the city.

For students, it is about more than science lessons. It is about addressing environmental equity, beautifying their neighborhood, and leaving a living legacy for future generations. “They listened to us and took us seriously,” one student shared after presenting tree-planting proposals to a neighborhood council.

Six years into her work at On Track, Beaty says she remains inspired by the resilience of her students. “So many of the obstacles are out of their control, especially since COVID,” she explains. “Students who are neurodivergent or who have lost connection need more tools, more trust, and more people who won’t give up on them.”

Her advice for other classified staff who want to make a difference: “Be open-minded. Use your skillset to adapt. Be a lifelong learner and keep moving forward.”

When asked what this honor means, Beaty does not talk about herself. She talks about her students. “I hope they remember that I saw them, heard them, respected them, and never gave up on them,” she says.

Her recognition as Regional Classified School Employee of the Year reflects both her dedication and the collaborative spirit of On Track Academy. Principal Chris Burke says Lori has a gift for helping students discover their path and leave a lasting mark.

For the students of On Track Academy, that mark now includes stronger voices, brighter futures, and new roots in the soil of their own neighborhood.

Overseen by the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the Regional Classified School Employee of the Year program recognizes the exceptional work of public-school employees. Winners are selected by a committee based on nominations from peers, supervisors, students and parents received by a regional coordinator at each of the state’s nine ESDs. While contending for the title of State Classified Employee of the Year, regional winners engage in year-long professional learning, leadership and advocacy training, and meet with state and national education leaders.