About Your GATE Facilitator

I joined the teaching profession by following in the footsteps of my four teacher grandparents. However, I got here in a roundabout way. I started off studying photojournalism at Indiana University. In addition to my studies, I worked as a creative problem-solving coach for Destination Imagination, Inc and worked as an outdoor adventure instructor teaching one-credit-hour courses such a white water rafting, backpacking, and rock climbing. These non-traditional teaching experiences made me realize how much I liked education, so after graduation, I moved to Texas to live with family and pursue a teaching certificate.

I taught in Texas for four years in a 5th grade classroom and in a 7-9th grade Montessori middle school environment before moving to Idaho to pursue a masters degree through the University of Idaho McCall Outdoor Science School program. There, I met my now husband and moved to Boise to teach integrated science and history at North Star Public Charter School in Eagle, ID. This is my fifth year as a GATE Facilitator with the Boise School District.

I have a passion for creative problem-solving, student-led work, and celebrating our differences and connections. Outside of teaching, I love exploring the outdoors with my family, introducing my son Rocco to the world, competing with my trivia team, and thrifting vintage décor for my 1950s home in Boise's Winstead Neighborhood. I am also a volunteer with the bipartisan political advocacy group Save the Children Action Network, where I advocate for the needs of children.