Phone: (785) 832-5550

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Training: University of Kansas 1995 -- B.S.E. Middle Secondary Education (English and Spanish) University of Kansas 1997 -- M.S.E. Special Education/Gifted Kansas State University -- Graduate Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages University of Kansas -- Master's coursework in Latin American Studies (all but thesis completed) Certifications: English Language Arts (5-12) Spanish (5-12) Gifted Education (5-12) ESOL (7-12)

Ms. Dani Lotton-Barker

Greetings!  I am thrilled to be working with your awesome kids.  I am the Gifted Education/Enrichment Resource teacher here at Southwest Middle School.  I work with students who have Special Education Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for Gifted Education to help them address the specific learning needs identified in their IEP goals/plans.  Much of our work takes place during Special Education FLEX classes, but can also be accomplished through other schoolwide enrichment opportunities or through independent projects outside of the classroom. I also work with general education teachers to provide other schoolwide enrichment opportunities for the students of Southwest, including co-taught, specialized FLEX enrichment classes for Future City (engineering challenge) and Model UN (social studies/public speaking).  

I love learning and always have!  This is the start of my 28th year of teaching, with 23 of those years being spent here at SW and the first five at Lawrence High School.  My hobbies include reading, traveling, practicing my Spanish, sewing, watching movies, and hanging out with my kids -- a junior son and a second year college student daughter.  Go, LHS Lions and Mount Holyoke Lyons!  My husband, Kelly Barker, also works with Bulldogs -- he teaches 7th grade social studies here at SWMS.