I moved around a lot as a kid because of my dad’s jobs and because it seemed my parents just occasionally wanted a change of scenery. I tagged along. From early on I had to learn how to make friends, not an easy task for a shy kid like me. I attended six different elementary schools and thankfully, one high school in Ohio, where I was born. At sixteen I got my first of many jobs. Before I finished college with a degree in English, I learned how to be a server, caterer, prep cook, fry cook, hardware store cashier, fabric cutter, stocker, clothing salesperson, pizza maker, and most of all, how to provide friendly customer service and be a productive employee.

I’ve worn many hats throughout my life: art consultant, electrical contractor, college student (again- I love school!) studio artist, home remodeler, landscaper, tutor, club leader, coach, board member, writer and my most important jobs of all, wife and mother. Some skills I learned from school, but most I learned from watching and talking to people with experience, reading how-to books, trial and error, and from being a mom to my grown son and daughter. I went back to college (the third time!) for graduate school, twenty-five years after I walked into my first college classroom. It was intimidating, being in a class of people who were already educators, but I soon realized (and my professor assured me) that I had a valuable voice to share.

What we learn in school when we are young is how and why we learn. Most of the learning you do in life you do on your own, by following your own curiosity, needs, and wants. That’s what I did. The desire to learn comes from within, it is intrinsic, but a teacher is there to show you how to search for answers, to value your own voice and to encourage you along the way to recognize what the failures teach and just maybe, where the successes will lead.