Marcella Ann Tarpley

A native Californian and educator for over 20 years, Marcella Ann Tarpley is currently a Behavior Support Specialist for the Moreno Valley School District. She holds two Master’s Degrees, one in Special Education and the other in Teaching. She has taught students with disabilities in grades 3-12 and has also had various positions outside the field of education as a restaurant manager and mail handler. She currently is working on her doctorate degree and a license in clinical psychology. 

For the past several years her professional focus has been serving students that were most at risk: foster, homeless and students with special needs. Marcella is a certified trauma professional, and her current focus is educating those around her about trauma and its effects on children and adolescents. In her last position as a Foster Youth Liaison, she pioneered a dual agency educational advocacy program and developed a data decision making screening tool that tracks educational outcomes of foster youth. One of her hallmark achievements during her tenure as a foster youth liaison was developing a volunteer advocacy program that trained individuals to be educational rights holders for foster youth. To continue her efforts on behalf of foster youth, she currently serves as a board member for Kamalii Foster Family Agency where she donates her time teaching foster youth how to sew. She was the recipient of the 2015 RCOE Site Support Staff of the Year Award. In the community she is well known for her advocacy efforts in training parents, social service professionals, and educators on how to maximize student success. In her spare time when not advocating for students, Marcella enjoys quilting, road trips, and listening to books on tape.