Staff Spotlight: Rosenda Pech - health technician at Yankee Hill Education Center

April 11, 2025

Every week, we’ll shine a spotlight on one Lincoln Public Schools staff member! Get to know the wonderful people making a positive impact across various areas within LPS. This week, meet Rosenda Pech, health technician at Yankee Hill Education Center.

“Rose is a terrific coworker and role model for our students! She goes above and beyond to support all students throughout our building.” - Grace Galinsky, teacher, Yankee Hill Education Center

In a few sentences, briefly describe your role at LPS.
I'm a health technician here at Yankee Hill Education Center. I do what I can to help support students and staff in having a safe and successful day. Whether it be something as minor as basic first aid or as major as medical emergencies—and so much more in between!

How long have you worked for LPS?
This is my second school year here.

What inspired you to become part of the education field at LPS?
One of my best friends (and biggest inspirations because she is amazing) is a treatment nurse with LPS Health Services—shout out to Jessica Brazda!! When she found out I was looking for a job, after having been a stay-at-home mom and looking for additional purpose in my life, she asked me if I had ever considered working in education. I hadn't, but she thought I'd be a great fit, especially for Health Services! So, here I am, and I'm ridiculously grateful that she nudged me in this direction!

What has been your favorite part of working here? What aspect of your job do you find most rewarding?
Being a part of the LPS organization has been great as far as the community goes and the resources offered to help students succeed. But, what I find most rewarding is the work I get to do, the students and staff I am privileged to know and help support, acknowledging big and little wins achieved by each student, and seeing the growth that continues to happen daily here. It matters. They matter!

I truly enjoy being a part of Yankee Hill: seeing where the students begin with us, acknowledging their struggles, supporting them where we can, witnessing them achieve big and little wins, and hearing them share their experiences back with their peers and staff—which can be both inspiring and hopeful to the students, and also a great reminder of why us as staff "do what we do" every day we show up.

Did you attend LPS as a student? If so, which school(s)? If not, where are you from?
No, I spent my formative years at St. Wenceslaus Elementary School and then Bishop Neumann Jr/Sr High School in Wahoo, Neb.

What path did you take after completing your formal education?
After graduating high school, I went on to earn my associate’s degree in business administration from Southeast Community College. I worked at Daitron for 2.5 years (where they manufactured harnesses for Kawasaki's Rail Car Division), first as a secretary, then as a production coordinator. Then, I went on to work at Kawasaki for 4.5 years, in the Consumer Products Division, in human resources. But, I had to make the difficult decision to leave there in order to take care of myself with the critical health conditions I had at the time. From there, I was a stay-at-home wife and mom for my husband and our two daughters for several years, along with some part-time jobs here and there. But, now I'm here and enjoying this chapter of my life!

What do you enjoy most about the Lincoln community?
I love the diversity in Lincoln, everything from the people, to the food, to the culture, to the dancing, to the music and everything in between! I myself am Mexican, Filipina and Czech. So, I grew up eating menudo, pozole, mole, tamales, Mexican adobo, Filipino adobo, lumpia, roasted duck or turkey, sauerkraut, dumplings, jaternice, kolaches and rosettes! I listened and learned how to dance to different types of Mexican music and polkas. I never learned how to dance the Tinikling (Filipino folk dance with bamboo sticks), but it's still on my bucket list! 

What is your favorite childhood book or a book that has influenced your life positively?
The Harry Potter series was most impactful. It heightened my sense of wonder, empathy and understanding. It taught me the importance of perseverance, believing in myself and standing up against injustice. On a much less serious note, but still very important to me since it helped shape my love for all things spooky and my love for telling scary stories around campfires and such is "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" by Alvin Schwartz. Those were always fun, but they definitely made it a little spookier when going to play "Ghosts in the Graveyard" (night time hide and seek) or laser tag in the dark with my cousins on the farm! Both of these series absolutely helped me to cultivate some of the best friendships I've ever had in my life!

Share a shout out to a former teacher who impacted your life.
My junior high teacher, Mrs. Jill Johnson (God rest her soul), was an absolute inspiration! She was kind, compassionate, empathetic, funny, clever, disciplined, patient and so much more. She was like a mother figure to so many of us there at school, and she was our biggest supporter of whichever school activities we were participating in since we'd often see her cheering from the crowd!

Do you know a LPS staff member we should feature for Staff Spotlight? Fill out this form to nominate them!

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