### Meet the Teacher

I have had many inspiring teachers while growing up in a small town in Virginia. There was my first grade teacher, Miss Burke, who started our education in reading and math and took the time to make the holidays special with exciting and interesting activities like roasting pumpkin seeds. My third grade teacher, Mrs. Daily, who taught us to write in cursive and gave us our first introduction to poetry and creating illustrations. And probably one of the most inspirational teachers I had, my fifth grade teacher - Mr. Miller. He challenged us to step out of our comfort zone and perform Cinderella for the whole school. But most of all he helped to develop the love and interest I have for science today by challenging me to prove him wrong. Because of that challenge, I competed in my first science fair taking first place. Most of all though, I proved him wrong through my science fair project and a love began to grow. I hope to follow those who inspired me and pass on a love of education to my students.

I moved to Rainier in 1990 from Texas. I received a Bachelor of Science degree in natural science with an emphasis in biology from the University of Puget Sound in 1994 and a Masters in Teaching from Saint Martins University in 1999. I student taught at Rainier High School in 1998 and joined the faculty here in 2001.