Dr. Ruth Sylvester joined Veritas after years of experience in education at both the elementary and university levels. Her grandchildren attend Veritas, and their contagious love for the school inspired her to begin substitute teaching, which eventually led to a full-time teaching position.
After earning her Ph.D. from the University of South Florida, Dr. Sylvester taught undergraduate and graduate students in literacy at the university level for nearly 20 years. During that time, she conducted research, published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at local, national, and international literacy conferences, and served as an editor of *The Florida Reading Journal*. She continues to review manuscripts for several literacy research journals.
Prior to her university career, Dr. Sylvester taught fifth grade before moving into educational administration in Lakeland, Florida. Throughout her career, she has led and served on accreditation teams for K–12 and higher education institutions and contributed to the development of standardized literacy assessments for teaching licensure in Florida and Ohio, as well as statewide K–12 student assessments.
Dr. Sylvester is excited to bring her experience from across the educational spectrum to third grade and, most importantly, return to her first love of teaching elementary-aged students.
Ruth and her husband, Tim, have three sons and amazing grandchildren. She enjoys traveling both domestically and internationally, including a recent memorable trip to Italy with her granddaughter.