About MeI grew up in Soldotna, a small town on the Kenai Peninsula in South Central Alaska. I lived there until I went off to college at 19 to Western Washington University. While at Western I received my B.A. in the Humanities. After graduation, I worked full time for Whatcom County Government in the Department of Information Technology before deciding to pursue a Masters in Teaching. I obtained my certificate in March 2009 with endorsements in both social studies as well as middle-level humanities and received my Masters in Teaching in June of 2009. During the 2010/2011 school year, I was lucky enough to fulfill a long-term substitute position at Meeker Middle School in the Kent School District. I took over a 7th grade language arts class, as well as two blocks of Tier 3 Language! intervention classes. During this time, I worked with ELL, special education, and at-risk youth, to bring students up to grade level and promote a high achieving attitude among students. This was a wonderful experience and one that challanged me to grow as a teacher. During the 2009/2010 school year, I taught at-risk youth in Soldotna, Alaska. Through all of my teaching experience, I know for sure that I have found the right career and have a more developed passion for education. Growing up, I didn't always know I wanted to be a teacher even though I was surrounded by teachers. Although most of my family has dedicated their lives to providing an excellent education for children and adolescents, I initially had different plans. When I was in kindergarten, I wanted to gaze at the stars. In upper elementary school, I dreamed of being an artist like my mother. In high school, I thought of becoming a psychologist. Not even by my college years had I decided that teaching was what I truly wanted. Yet I now see that my extended family of educators has taught me what it takes to be a teacher. The many years watching the time and energy that they provide their students has given me an appreciation for the tremendous commitment it takes to be an effective educator. Even though I have admired my families' dedication as teachers, my formal training at college helped me to solidify my aspirations to become a teacher. As an undergrad, I majored in Liberal Studies because the courses opened my eyes to history in a whole new way. Reading primarily first-hand sources made the time periods and places come alive and provided me a powerful understanding of people and culture. This method of learning sparks a passion for history and I have developed a better understanding of our world and how it came to be. I hope to pass this enthusiasm on to my own students by making history real for them. After college I was excited, yet somewhat scared, to start working. I had worked in the summers and during school breaks, yet never all year round. I envisioned I would be working for a non-profit, doing something good for women, children, or for those in need. When I was offered a job with Whatcom County, although it wasn't a typical non-profit, I saw it as a means of providing meaningful services for my community. After working for a few months, I realized my job was very tightly outlined, leaving little to no room for personal input or growth. I felt stifled and unable to make an impact. I was pulling stables out of documents all day, when I wanted to be creating social progress. It was four months into my job with the County when I realized I deeply missed the academic atmosphere. Unexpectedly, my dreary job enabled me to evaluate my life and my goals for the future. I knew I wanted a meaningful career where I could make an impact on others and the community. Teaching offers meaning for me, and it was at this point that I decided to go back to school to become a secondary school teacher. My personal background and work experience have led me to the decision to teach, but my education is what drives me. One of the greatest benefits that I believe I can provide my students is not only my passion for learning about history and language arts, but also my desire to support diversity. With diversity come new points of view and new modes of understanding. I want to present history and language arts from the perspective of all peoples, from all classes, ethnicities, and cultures. By doing so, I hope that every student, regardless of their background, can see that their own story is important. I know that I have the ability and enthusiasm necessary to teach so that lessons will truly be learned. I strive to give my students a sense of where humankind has come from so that they may be a positive force in where our world is headed. I believe I not only have what it takes to be a great educator, I also have the understanding and drive to succeed.
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