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Welcome! Thanks for visiting. Here is a little bit about me & my work...
After teaching for 12 years in K-6 classrooms, I am pursuing a PhD with research interests in:
My Professional Story: I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and attended Washington University in St. Louis. During my time at Wash U, I took a course that inspired me to join a group called Educators for Social Justice - ESJ). Through organizing ESJ curriculum conferences, book clubs, Inquiry to Action Groups, and more, I have learned that I love working to mentor/intellectualize other teachers around their justice-oriented work. After graduating from Wash U, I became a 4th grade teacher in a bilingual school in Guadalajara, Mexico where I immersed myself in Mexican life and education. This adventure enabled me to internalize culture, language, privilege, power, and systems from new perspectives. I, then, became active in Teachers for Social Justice while working toward my Masters in Education at University of Illinois at Chicago and certificates in Bilingual Education and ESL. A Teaching Assistantship granted me the privilege of facilitating Literacy Workshops and teaching ESL classes with Latinx families through a Family Literacy program called F.L.A.M.E. (Family Literacy Aprendiendo Mejorando Educando). I embraced Chicago's endless possibilities and its windy politics, but I missed my big family in St. Louis. I moved back home and taught 4th grade at Kratz Elementary in the Ritenour School District where I became a model teacher for Culturally & Linguistically Relevant Teaching and was awarded Diamond Circle Teacher of the Year. I was then drawn to teach 6th grade at Maplewood Richmond Heights School District where I was able to integrate Critical Literacy, Museum Learning, and Social Justice Education. My husband, Charlie, proposed to me in my 4th grade classroom and we got married in July of 2013. The following year our sweet son, Scotty, was born and we moved to Chicago for Charlie’s job as a Resident in Emergency Medicine at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. In Chicago I founded the Teachers for Social Justice Book Club and worked as a 2nd grade teacher at Coonley Elementary, a Chicago Public School. When we returned to St. Louis and had our daughter, Josie, I became active in Educators for Social Justice again and began my journey for a PhD in Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia. I am studying Learning, Teaching & Curriculum with an emphasis in Social Studies Education. I have two Graduate Teaching Assistantships: 1) Elementary Social Studies Methods Instructor, and 2) Field Instructor in which I support elementary pre-service teachers through their junior year classroom field experiences. I still live in St. Louis, but I commute to Mizzou 1-2 days per week & am home the rest of the week. I am thrilled to be at MU working on various research projects. I am exceptionally grateful for my family for supporting me through my continued journey in advocating for educational equity. Thank you for taking the time to learn about me and my work! Please reach out if you'd like to talk shop. [email protected] |
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