Summer Counselor Passy Matendo: Following her DREAM to Become an Elementary School Teacher
- Jon Reidel
- Aug 11
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 12
Passy Matendo doesn’t recall the exact moment she realized she wanted to become an elementary school teacher. It was more of a series of events and influences over time starting early in life while helping raise her siblings in a refugee camp in Tanzania.
Other inspirations would follow after moving with her family to Vermont at age 11. At Winooski High School, she started mentoring younger students as part of an after-school DREAM program, eventually volunteering as a summer camp counselor at DREAM’s Elm Street site. She began studying elementary education during her sophomore year, leading to a senior year capstone project that brought her into a second grade classroom, confirming her desire to become a teacher.
“DREAM came into my life in 10th grade and was such a great experience,” said Matendo, who continues to help raise her six siblings. “It prepared me for my senior capstone project in the classroom. The kids were great. They called me ‘Miss Passy.’ It was very sweet. I could see myself as a teacher. I was like ‘this is what I want to do and these are the kinds of kids I want to work with.’”
Now a sophomore elementary education major at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire, Matendo is spending her fourth summer at Elm Street as a counselor.
“It has been amazing to see how the kids have grown over the past three years,” she said. “I am much more confident now in handling situations since my first summer when I would watch older counselors handle them. Now I’m like, ‘let me handle it. I got this.’ It takes time to build trust and work together to make sure we have a fun, productive summer because that’s the goal of DREAM.”
Envisioning a Future with DREAM
Matendo has fond memories of taking summer DREAM students to the beach, Six Flags, Get Air, and other fun places. She views these trips as invaluable opportunities for young people, including her own six siblings who otherwise would not experience them. “My parents both work and really love DREAM because their children can see and learn new things,” she said. “My dad wants us all to go to college unless there is another opportunity that makes sense. I think DREAM opens people’s eyes to the possibilities."
As a first-gen college student, Matendo wants to set an example for her siblings and other DREAMers from Elm Street and beyond. Although it has been a challenging transition, she says New England College is fast becoming her second home. “I went to an open house there and fell in love with the environment,” she says. “It’s a lot of work but I love it. Sometimes I wish I was back at Winooski (High School), but now I am trying to make college my home.”
For Matendo, diversity and a sense of community are essential to the success of any school, program, city, or small town. She felt both at Winooski and DREAM. “I think it’s important that the counselors at every site represent the diversity of the kids so they can feel comfortable approaching someone who looks like them. I’m really glad that I am at this site representing the diversity of the kids who are here.”
Matendo plans to stay in touch with her mentees long after they graduate from DREAM, just as her counselor-mentors have with her. She remains in contact with Hunter Delaney, Kate Snyman, and Rebecca Fulford, all of whom worked at Elm Street before graduating from University of Vermont.
“They still come back home and even bring a cake to celebrate my siblings birthdays,” she said. “So much love from them. When they come to see us we are always happy because they are amazing people and have really done their part in the community and serving the Elm Street kids.”
Matendo plans to finish her degree at New England College with support from DREAM's annual Coast-2-Camp virtual fundraiser. Her team—affectionately named the Passy Matendo College Fund—rallied 13 teammates to raise $4,025 to be used for tuition, room, and board.
After college, Matendo plans to return home to Winooski to teach second grade and continue working with DREAM.
“I want DREAM to grow bigger and go more places because it’s such a great program for kids and young people who want to work and help their community,” she said. “DREAM brings out positive things in people they didn’t even know about themselves. I want to be part of that in the future.”
Interested in becoming a mentor?