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Teacher Spotlight: Carolina Moratti

How a Local Educator Turned Compassion into Community Change

When a teacher brings passion into her classroom, it can inspire students and even transform a city. Carolina Moratti, the instructor of the Young Chefs class at the Institute of Music for Children, has become a symbol of this change.

This year, she received the Outstanding Volunteer Award from the Town Clock Community Development Corporation at the Being Brave 2025 event. This recognition honors her leadership in The Promesa Project and her efforts to strengthen families throughout New Brunswick. 

From Teacher to Community Builder

Chef Carolina's primary focus in the classroom is using cooking to foster creativity, teamwork, and cultural awareness. Her Young Chefs sessions have developed from simple recipe lessons into lessons in empathy. Through preparing meals, students also learn the significance of sharing them with others.

“From the beginning to the end, it was very heartwarming to see them get comfortable and secure about their talents — from the smiles on their faces to their work in the kitchen. It’s been very rewarding to see them grow,” Carolina said.

This same philosophy guided her beyond the walls of the Institute. Through The Promesa Project, Carolina has organized prom dress drives, holiday celebrations, and the “Birthday in a Box” initiative. She developed this program during the pandemic to ensure that children from struggling families could still experience a moment of joy. Each of these efforts is rooted in a simple belief: compassion can be organized, scaled, and sustained through collaboration within the community. 

Recognition Rooted in Resilience

The Being Brave 2025 award recognizes more than just volunteerism; it honors Carolina for her roles as both a survivor and an advocate. Having overcome personal experiences with domestic violence, she has become a powerful voice for empowerment, publicly sharing her journey of resilience and recovery. Her story serves as a reminder that healing and leadership can go hand in hand.

At the Institute, Carolina's presence continues to significantly impact both students and staff. Colleagues describe her classes as joyful and grounded, skillfully blending creativity with care. For many children, she demonstrates that kindness is not a sign of weakness but rather a strength in action.

She sees each child as an individual and for the Spring Showcase, she made a recipe book that was unique to each child based on what she learned about them in the classroom.

“When I first started cooking class, I met many new faces and learned a lot about how to interact with others,” said one of Chef Carolina’s students in the Afterschool Institute program.

Carolina's recognition serves as a reminder of how local leadership is cultivated—not always through grand gestures but through consistent acts of love. In every meal prepared, every child celebrated, and every story shared; her work illustrates how small initiatives can create a ripple effect and transform lives.