Teaching & Professional Journey

Degrees

1998 — B.S., Secondary Education — Mathematics/Physics
University of North Alabama

2005 — M.A., Interdisciplinary Studies — Mathematics
Texas Tech University

2013 — M.S., Engineering Education
The University of Texas at Austin

Professional Experience

1998–2002 — Mathematics and Science Teacher
Cherokee High School

2002–2004 — Developmental Mathematics Professor
South Plains College

2004–2005 — Mathematics Teacher
Stony Point Ninth Grade Center

2005–2016 — Mathematics, Engineering & Robotics Teacher
John B. Connally High School

2007–2010 — Developmental Mathematics Professor
Liberty University

2006–Present — Developmental Mathematics Professor
Austin Community College

My Professional Journey

My first teaching job brought me right back to where my own complicated relationship with mathematics began: Cherokee High School, the same school I had attended as a teenager.

There was something fitting about beginning my teaching career in the same place where I had once felt confused and overwhelmed by math. A classroom associated with my own frustration became one of the first places where I had the opportunity to help students who felt much the same way I once had.

Like most beginning teachers, I made plenty of mistakes.

I learned how much work happens before a successful lesson ever begins. I struggled with student engagement, classroom management, and understanding exactly what kind of teacher I wanted to become. Veteran teachers can sometimes make teaching look effortless; my first years taught me how much thought, preparation, flexibility, and reflection are actually required.

Those early years also gave me opportunities to explore my interests in science and STEM education, including the chance to attend Space Camp—something I had dreamed about for years.

Discovering Developmental Mathematics

After moving to Lubbock, I was fortunate to interview for a full-time faculty position at South Plains College. I was offered the job, and the experience changed the direction of my career.

It was there that I began to understand just how strongly a student's previous experience with mathematics can influence their future.

My classes were filled with students attending community college because they wanted to pursue careers and build better lives. Many were passionate about where they wanted to go.

But mathematics stood in the way.

For some, it wasn't simply a missing skill. They carried years of frustration, anxiety, and the belief that they were simply incapable of succeeding in math.

I discovered that I loved the college environment, but even more than that, I loved helping students accomplish something they had stopped believing was possible.

That experience shaped much of what I still do today.

From Mathematics to Engineering and Robotics

After moving to the Austin area, I eventually joined John B. Connally High School.

I began by teaching Algebra I, but Connally soon began developing learning communities focused on different academic and career areas. I became deeply involved in the Science, Engineering and Mathematics community, helping expose students to opportunities in engineering, robotics, mathematics, and other STEM fields.

That work connected perfectly with something I had already come to believe:

Mathematics becomes more meaningful when students can see what they can do with it.

Eventually, I moved from primarily teaching mathematics into teaching robotics and engineering courses.

With the support of fellow teachers, industry partners, professional engineers, parents, and many others, we began building Connally Robotics.

When we started, the program consisted of roughly eight students and mentors with almost no budget. Many of the students had never met an engineer and had only a vague idea of what engineers actually did.

Within a few years, the program had grown into multiple teams involving more than 50 students and approximately 20 mentors, with an annual budget of around $45,000. Our students eventually competed at the world-championship level.

The competition was exciting, but the larger accomplishment was the community we created.

Students gained access to professional mentors, technical experiences, teamwork, problem solving, leadership opportunities, and a vision of careers they may never previously have imagined for themselves.

We were doing much more than building robots.

We were helping students build possibilities.

Choosing a Different Direction

Connally Robotics became a true labor of love, and I became deeply invested in the program.

I was teaching full time, working with students after school and on many weekends, and also teaching evening courses at Austin Community College. Eventually, I realized that the pace was not sustainable.

Leaving Connally and stepping away from leading the robotics program was one of the most difficult professional decisions I have ever made.

At the same time, it allowed me to take on a new role in my family by homeschooling my children while expanding my work as a professor and tutor at ACC.

Looking back, I am grateful I made that choice.

Bringing the Pieces Together

I am now in my 28th year of teaching and my 20th year at Austin Community College.

When I look back across my career, the jobs may appear different—high-school science teacher, developmental mathematics professor, engineering teacher, robotics mentor, tutor, and faculty advisor—but the underlying work has been remarkably consistent.

I have spent my career helping students see possibilities they may not yet see in themselves.

Today, I teach developmental mathematics and currently serve as an SEM Faculty Advisor at Austin Community College.

In my advising work, many of the threads from my career come together: building community, helping students explore STEM pathways, addressing fear and anxiety around mathematics, connecting education to careers, and helping students navigate obstacles that can make college feel overwhelming.

Whether I am working with a student who is afraid of algebra, someone trying to choose a STEM major, or a student simply wondering whether they belong in college, the goal is much the same:

Help them identify the next step, believe that step is possible, and give them the support they need to take it.