A Community That Carries You is Worth Supporting
For many educators, a school is a place of purpose. For Middle School Science Faculty Member Samantha Vezza-Valle, Gulliver has been a community that has stood beside her through life’s most joyful milestones and its most difficult seasons.
Since joining Gulliver, she married, welcomed two daughters, and built a career rooted in curiosity, care, and excellence. Through it all, she has felt supported by colleagues, administrators, students, and families who show up for one another.
That support became especially powerful during moments of hardship. While navigating the loss of her mother and multiple military deployments by her husband, Samantha found steady encouragement close to home. In particular, her Middle School science team became a source of strength, offering friendship, guidance, and a sense of belonging that carried her through uncertainty and change.
“Gulliver has been more than a workplace,” Samantha shares. “It has been a community that sustained me through both celebration and hardship.”
When a school shows up for its people, its people show up in return.
Samantha’s gratifying Gulliver experience is what inspired her to participate in the Faculty and Staff Giving Program. For her, giving back is not an obligation; it is about gratitude, stewardship, and belief in the school’s mission and vision.
She wears her faculty giving pin with deep pride, seeing it as a quiet but powerful symbol of commitment to a place that has given her so much. For her, the pin represents shared values and strength in community.
“Gulliver has given so much to me, both professionally and personally,” she explains. “I give because I want to invest in the same environment of care, excellence, and opportunity that has shaped my life and career. It is important to me to support a school that truly lives its values and places people first.”
Through her giving, her hope is simple but powerful. Every student who walks through Gulliver’s doors should continue to have the freedom to explore, discover, and grow. With so many programs and pathways available, and now the school’s bold Centennial vision for the future, Samantha believes that we can all do our part to ensure students have what they need to find their spark and chart their own path forward.
As both an educator and a parent, she understands how powerful it is to have a school that nurtures curiosity and excellence. Her two “Raiders in Training,” baby Selene and toddler Athena, are growing up in a world of possibility and questions – lots of them. Whether it is wondering why jackets are warm or why sleep is necessary, she delights in watching their love of learning begin to bloom.
By choosing to give back, Samantha is both supporting the students she teaches and those who will follow, including the little ones watching and learning at home right now.
Join Samantha in Giving Back to Gulliver:
Faculty like Samantha are at the heart of the Gulliver experience. When you support Gulliver, you invest directly in advancing teaching and learning that inspires the next generation of learners.
Faculty/Staff: Stand alongside Samantha and support the community you help shape every day. Make a one-time gift or enroll in payroll deduction.
Parents, Alumni, and Friends of Gulliver: Join Samantha in giving back to the educators and programs that make a Gulliver education possible. Make a gift.
