Biography

Early Life:

I was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, but grew-up in Camden, Delaware. Upon graduation from Caesar Rodney High School, I went into the United States Army.

Military Life:

I went to basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. I transferred to Fort Gordon, Georgia for training in teletype operation. We typed on a three-row typewriter which only had capital letters. I served in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Camp Essayons, South Korea and Fort Riley, Kansas.

When I was stationed in South Korea, we ran each morning by the home of "4077 M.A.S.H unit." There was a tiny sign indicating where the unit was located. If you blinked you would miss the sign and location of this unit.

Education:

I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Biblical Studies from Emmaus Bible College located in Dubuque, Iowa. Graduation Date: May 1991.

I have a Master of Arts degree in Communication and Training Technology from University of Northern Iowa (UNI), Cedar Falls, Iowa. Graduation Date: May 1993.

Professional and Career:

I started my career as as the Audio-visual person for Schindler Education Building on the UNI Campus. I became the computer lab monitor for a campus computer lab. I worked up to the lab supervisor and provided student training on use of a variety of software titles in the lab.

After graduating, I was the assistant technology director at Malcolm Price Laboratory School, Cedar Falls, Iowa.

While at UNI, my career goal was to create educational videos. I soon discovered that my talents were not in video creation and storytelling. Since I was working in the computer lab, I had a change of direction and went into computer support.

My contract ended at the Lab school and I became the technology director for WeBCATT, (We Build Communication Access Through Technology). This program was a federally funded research project to place technology in the homes of Special Education students. We had families in Cedar Falls, Waterloo, Charles City, Waverly and surrounding areas. I was with WeBCATT for five years. At the end of the grant, I accepted the position of Director of Technology with Independence Community School District.

I have been with Independence for twelve years. One of my first projects at Indee was to update the district phone system and develop a plan to replace 8-10 year old computers throughout the district. It is exciting to work in Indee, the district is now using our 1:1 Technology Initiative to guide, plan and implement technology for all buildings.