This is my 29th year of teaching! I taught in my hometown of Bakersfield, California for eight years prior to moving to the Greenville area. I started my teaching here in SC at Simpsonville Elementary for three years and then transferred to Woodland Elementary for another seven years. I then used my elementary Reading knowledge to coach Middle School teachers at Tanglewood Middle School. After three years, I returned to my heart, which is working with younger students. I worked for four years as a Literacy Specialist of Plain Elementary, and then the perfect opportunity opened up at Skyland last year. Now as Literacy Specialist at Skyland, I am lucky enough to do all things literacy from working with amazing teachers, students, and families all in my own backyard. I love my reading life and love this community I live in and now work in! I am truly blessed to be a Skyland Bulldog and can't wait to spend another year with you!

I received my Associates of Science degree in Business in 1992, my Bachelors of Arts in Child Development in 1995, and completed my graduate studies in Education with an emphasis on Math and English as a Second Language in 1996. I have also completed my Masters in English Language Learning and Teaching in 2016 and second Masters in Curriculum and Instruction. My experience has been working with students with a variety of needs such as students with learning disabilities, students whose second language is English, and Gifted and Talented students. No matter where a child comes from, the advantages or disadvantages he/she has, I love my job and I love all kids, big and small! Like I tell each of them- you are unique and special just because you're YOU!

I am married (for 36 years now), we have an 24 year old son who graduates Clemson (Go Tigers!) on August 8th of this year. He is moving to Sumter right after school starts to work in Digital Forensics for the Police Department. We also have a 19 year old daughter who attends North Greenville University studying criminal justice and law. We have three cats, three hermit crabs, and four dogs. You guessed it! We love animals and enjoy our time at home in our little "zoo."

We moved to the Greenville area from Bakersfield, California going on twenty years now and love the beautiful trees and greenery here in South Carolina! My husband is a native South Carolinian while I was born and raised in California. I love our life here because everyone is kind, warmhearted, and not in a hurry to get somewhere. I love poetry, any book by Nora Roberts, Jennifer Weiner, or Lisa Jackson, birdhouses, music, thrift store shopping, and old “stuff”! For pleasure, I enjoy reading by the lake, listening to music anytime, walking along the beach, hiking, road trips, and just spending time with family enjoying the little things in life like a turtle crawling across the road or a hawk flying through the trees!

I thank my son for the laughter and my daughter for helping me learn to cherish every moment! I thank my husband for still making me believe in surprises, and I thank my students and friends in education for helping me remember the joy of being a child!