After three and a half years studying at Bridgewater State University, John Bruault returned to high school.

He’s back as a special education teacher at Dartmouth High School, his alma mater.

Bruault, along with 24 other newly hired faculty and staff, attended a reception on Sept. 14 inside Quinn Elementary School.

The event preceded a formal welcome from the Dartmouth School Committee held later in the evening.

Bruault is a member of the class of 2011 who was hired last December.

“I’m thrilled to be back,” he said. “It’s an incredible school district, and I’m looking forward to making a difference.”

Superintendent Bonny Gifford said the new staff members are highly qualified – some have 20 or more years of experience in the field.

“We have a very charismatic and talented staff,” Gifford said. “There are a lot of good people out there. We just had to be sure and scoop them up.”

Bruault is among them.

Each year, the school hosts the Dartmouth School Day Games that brings together approximately 125 special education students from Dartmouth, Fall River, Westport and New Bedford in competition. Bruault has been part of that event for 10 years.

Through his involvement Bruault said, “I found I was passionate about special education, and that made the work that much easier.”

Sandra Alpoim-Raposo, a speech language pathologist, said the district’s commitment to special education was also a deciding factor in applying.

Formerly of the Westport School District, Alpoim-Raposo said she supported her students when they competed in the Special Olympics event held in town.

“Dartmouth makes it a point to consider the special needs population and include them as much as possible,” said Alpoim-Raposo. “I feel strongly about that decision and I support it.”

After 10 years in education, Alpoim-Raposo’s tenure is part of 200 plus years of combined experience amongst new staff, according to Tracy Oliveira, director of curriculum Title 1 and mentoring.

She said hiring 25 people for the new school year is typical.

“We have a very good retention rate,” Oliveira said, adding that new kindergarten teachers were hired to maintain low class sizes.

All new faculty members are paired with a mentor for one year, in some cases two.

“We try to assign mentors based on compatibility,” Oliveira said. “It’s kind of like matchmaker.com.”

Leslie Gamache is mentoring Rachel Arruda. A Dartmouth resident, Arruda is a recent graduate of Bridgewater State University and first year teacher.

Both teach third grade and are neighbors as they share adjacent classrooms.

“We frequently check in on each other,” said Gamache.

“It’s very nice knowing she’s just one door away,” said Arruda.

As a mentor, Gamache will guide Arruda through the school year, helping her with everything from curriculum questions to making sure students catch the bus on time.

Lisa Medeiros, one of the more experienced hires, has been in education for 29 years.

A literacy coach for kindergarten through fifth grade, Medeiros arrived in the district from Fall River.

She said the current staff has been very accommodating.

“Everybody has reached out and offered to help,” she said. “It really is appreciated.”