About Me-The Long and the Short of It!

The Longer Narrative:

There was never a time I didn’t want to be a teacher! I have photos of myself as a one-year-old with baby dolls and stuffed animals lined up so I can “teach” them. After college, I excitedly began teaching Theater, Spanish, and Freshman English in high school. Seeing the trend toward migration to the suburbs (and the declining enrollment in the inner city), I moved to the Peoria Unified District to teach an 8th-grade bilingual class. I adored my hard-working students, many of whom were the first in their families to reach 8th grade. However, their reading level in English was far below grade level, and we were not given texts in Spanish, so we moved slowly through the material, translating as we went. I began to feel great empathy for a few students who were far above the rest and so patient about having to wait for the rest of their classmates, often asking if they could help me in some way. I began to take night classes to learn how to meet their needs while simultaneously teaching the rest of my class. By the time I had earned a Masters in Special Education, specializing in gifted, I received a call from the district office asking me to please come teach for the PUSD gifted program. I taught gifted k-8 at various elementary schools for the next 25 years, then moving to being a Gifted Curriculum Coach for a couple of years, and, finally, agreeing to become the Gifted Services Coordinator for the district. Along the way, I wrote curriculum; brought out-of-state co-curricular trips to the district; coached coached MathCounts, Future City, Odyssey of the Mind, and Scholastic Bowl teams; and enjoyed the most innovative and well-appreciated teaching position anyone could ever want! The best part of my job was spending time each day with my students, an amazing and talented group of individuals! I also won several grants for exciting projects, was named Most Influential Teacher by the Ironwood High School NHS 12 years in a row, and was Arizona Teacher of the Year Finalist in 2006. My most precious awards, however, are the relationships with “my” students, many of whom are still in touch with me, inviting me to graduations, recitals, weddings, and holiday parties. Teaching gifted was not a job, it was a mission! I was greatly blessed by being able to work in a field about which I felt great passion and commitment–and to experience the on-going connections to my former students. I’m now a retired, hands-on grandmother and part-time educational consultant/gifted advocate.

Just the Highlights:

B.A.E. in Secondary Education, Majoring in Theater Arts/Speech and minoring in Spanish

Certificates in Secondary Education and Elementary Education

Gifted certificate k-12

Highly qualified to teach English writing, English literature, Spanish, Social Studies, Theater, Speech, Gifted

Seven years teaching junior high, 25 years teaching k-8 gifted, 7 years administration/training teachers

Published author of gifted curriculum, poetry, non-fiction magazine articles, and a play, which was produced locally and nominated for the AriZoni Award for “Best Original Play of 2014”

Developed and taught college curriculum to qualify teachers for their gifted endorsement

Chosen as Arizona Teacher of the Year Finalist, 2006

Chosen “Most Influential Teacher” by the graduating class of Ironwood High School, 2007