About Me
I grew up in Northwest Indiana, specifically, Munster, IN, which is very near Chicago and is known as "The Region." My husband and I now reside in Covington, KY, which is right across the river from Cincinnati, OH. My husband took a job relocation after his work closed their site in Munster, IN. After a bit of long distance, I moved here in 2013 and we still continue to explore our new city on a weekly basis.
I am the youngest of three girls. Both of my sisters have moved away from the area, but we have many family and friends that reside there, so we go back frequently. I am a proud aunt of 4 nieces and nephews who I try to see as much as possible. In my free time, I like to read, run, and waterski. Traveling is something else that takes up my husband's and my free time as we like to visit new places.
Now that you know a bit about me personally, it's time to share my professional pathway. I graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor degree in Communications and then obtained my teaching certificate in a Secondary English Education program at Purdue University Calumet, which is now called Purdue University Northwest. Shortly after receiving my teaching credentials, I began teaching 7th grade English Language Arts (ELA) at Wilbur Wright Middle School (WWMS) in Munster, IN. Here, I was introduced to my first 1:1 implementation program regarding technology. We were asked to use the Learning Management System (LMS), Moodle, and I was one of six individuals that had a Promethean Board that I was able to utilize on a daily basis. Our department didn't have a specific online curriculum, but our textbook did have an online component that I voluntarily integrated in my lessons. Having the access to a variety of online applications allowed me to see the value and the empowerment students had developed.
I was the ELA teacher at WWMS until I left the area and moved to Cincinnati, OH. In Cincinnati, I was hired on as a Technology Training Administrator at Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS). After my 7 years in the classroom, I saw how impactful technology was for teachers and students. This position allowed me to continue researching educational technologies, yet still teach. Teachers were my audience instead of students. However, I knew what I was teaching the teachers would influence students, and be a larger scale. I could reach more students than just the 150 that were in my classes at WWMS. I am still in this position and we continue to grow in the educational technologies department. What started as just me has turned into a team of four individuals. Working more closely with curriculum, we continue to strive to bring new, advanced technologies that can make a difference for our students. Training teachers on using these technologies grant them the ability to see how useful integrating technology in their classroom can be and will empower their students.