Paradise Professional Development School
Welcome to Paradise PDS, Home of the Wildcats! I am so excited about all that the 2023-2024 school year has to offer our Paradise students and community. We were thrilled to have all of our Wildcats back on campus with us this past school year, and we want to continue to build upon that momentum. We are looking forward to continuing our extracurricular activities, tutoring, and family events. As a school community, we appreciate your support in sending your child to school each day so we can support our students in accelerating their learning.
I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to serve as the principal of Paradise Professional Development School. Before my appointment as Principal of Paradise PDS, I was the Principal and Assistant Principal at Hancock Elementary School for five years. This school year will be my 22nd year in the Clark County School District. Prior to being an administrator, I was a classroom teacher, learning strategist, and interventionist at the elementary school level. While in the classroom, I also worked as a new teacher mentor facilitator and a 21st Century Community Learning Centers Site-Leader.
I have two M.Ed. degrees from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Leadership) and a B.A. in Communication (Emphasis in Media) and a minor in English Literature from Wheaton College. I am a graduate of the Clark County School District, and it means a lot to be able to serve in our community. I am passionate about educational reform and excited at the opportunity to continue to work with the Paradise community to ensure all students are prepared to meet the changing demands of the university and workforce setting. As a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien, his words “Even the smallest person can change the course of the future” consistently stay with me when working with our students and making decisions that impact their future and our school community.
When I am not working with our Paradise PDS students and staff, I enjoy spending time with my husband and our dogs, Percy and Penny.
I would encourage you to attend one of our Third Thursday every other month (October, December, February, and April) from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. We begin each event with Snacktime with Books sponsored by Spread the Word Nevada followed by a fun family engagement event. Please also attend our monthly School Organizational Team meetings as well. Our SOT team is comprised of staff, parents, and administration. We meet on the second Tuesday of the month from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. As an SOT team, we discuss areas of interest to our school community ranging from curriculum to school budgets to family engagement opportunities.
I believe that it takes a strong partnership between the school and home to ensure our students' success. Please stop by our school for a visit or reach out to me via phone or e-mail.
Cheers to a wonderful school year,
Mrs. Stover
702.799.5660
Stay "in the know" by following Paradise PDS on Instagram @lvparadisepds.
Follow Ms. Stover on Twitter @PrincipalStover to see all of the amazing things going on at Paradise PDS!
Please welcome our new Paradise Assistant Principals!
Mrs. Sonia Etelis
Assistant Principal
I am honored to work as the assistant principal at Paradise Elementary School! I have always had a passion to work with children. To begin this vision, I worked with students behind the scenes as a private tutor. That provided me with just the right foundation and start to my educational career, which led to me receiving my first master's in childhood education. During my education, I wanted to work with a specific group of students: English Language Learners. Thus, I earned a bilingual extension and use this craft to support learners with diverse language abilities.
Education is such a versatile field with multiple opportunities to develop one’s skills. Even though teaching is my passion, serving a school community and having teachers, students, and their families as community partners, is the route I was continuously working towards.
Before moving to Las Vegas, I taught 2nd and 3rd-grade Spanish dual language in New York City. I have been teaching 3rd-grade general education, serving as the school’s Student Success Advocate, and have worked with students to promote kindness, integrity, and motivation.
Since 2019, I have been residing in Las Vegas and exploring the West Coast. I was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland (Go Ravens!) and later, relocated to New York City which opened a lot of opportunities. In Las Vegas, I have made it a mission to find unique coffee shops. Coffee shops are my place to unwind after a long week as well as socialize with friends and family.
I am eager to begin a new educational path and apply all of the experiences I have obtained to be a leader that models proactiveness, respect, independence, discipline, and excellence to drive student success.
Mr. Ryan Guzman
Assistant Principal
My name is Ryan Guzman, and I am so excited and proud to be one of your Assistant Principals at Paradise!
I was born and raised in El Paso, TX. I received my BA in History and Secondary Education from The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). I moved to Las Vegas in 2010. From 2012-2014, I lived and taught in Denver, CO before we made the decision to move back to Las Vegas to make our home in Henderson and we haven’t looked back! I taught Social Studies and was a behavior interventionist for ten years before I became a Student Success Instructional Facilitator and got my administration endorsement.
I have a Masters of Education from the University of Phoenix in adult education and training and a Masters of Education from The American College of Education in Educational Administration.
In my free time, I hang out with my wife and two girls. I love this city and being a part of the Las Vegas community!
