My pathway to becoming a teacher took many twists and turns.  I may not have the story that some teachers have of always knowing that they were born to be a teacher, but I believe the experiences that I have had make me a better teacher with a variety of experiences and knowledge of the world to share with my students. 

           I grew up in Rock Springs Wyoming.  I excelled in my studies and was in gifted and talented programs in elementary school and on AP tracks in junior high and high school. I spent a lot of time tutoring other students and enjoyed sharing knowledge with my peers.  I competed in mathematics competitions, loved to read and jumped on any opportunity to learn more about the world around me.
            I graduated from Rock Springs High School in the top 5% of my class in 1998.  I was selected for National Children’s Choir in 8^th grade and All-Northwest choir as a junior.  I played the piano for the school plays and participated in many volunteer activities.  I was selected to be part of a peer support group and was trained in helping students my age with difficult situations in life.  I also was awarded for my volunteer work for the Head Start program.  I particularly loved math and participated in Calculus club as a senior.
            I knew exactly where I wanted to go to college and was accepted to Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah as an honor’s student.  I attended their late summer honor’s program and worked on a team to edit their undergraduate journal, but after a few semesters of changing majors and not knowing what I wanted to do with my life, I left school and moved close to my sister to help her with her family. 
            This time in my life was a difficult one.  I decided then that someday I wanted to be a teacher, but first I wanted to study music and perform.  I moved to Boston where I attended a summer program in vocal jazz at Berklee College of Music.  I met many wonderful friends attending the many universities in the area and I struggled with my decision to leave Berklee.  I left with a heavy heart but the financial burden was just too much and I moved to Las Vegas where I pursued my love of children, music and teaching.
            I worked part-time at Child Haven, a shelter for abused, neglected and abandoned children and part-time at UNLV as an instructor of musical theatre.  This led me to sing at the Stratosphere, the Paris and eventually the Venetian where I discovered Italian music, opera, and my husband.  I began singing with Opera Las Vegas and studying with a teacher from New York.
            I quit singing at the Venetian and got a job as a music teacher with a private elementary school in Las Vegas.  I was the first music teacher they had ever had so I was handed a list of objectives for each grade level and had the opportunity to create a curriculum based on those objectives.  My connection to math returned to me during a third grade lesson on note values in music.  I knew that they were learning fractions so I related my lesson to their fraction lesson.  Seeing, hearing and creating fractions through sound created understanding for many students who were struggling with the concept of fractions. 
            My husband and I decided to move to New York to pursue our music studies.  We were immediately welcomed into the community and studied with amazing teachers and coaches.  I made my living tutoring foster children, working at an after school program in Riverdale and teaching at a conservatory in Staten Island.  I also got a job tutoring a ballerina at the American School of Ballet in Geometry, the one math subject that I had struggled with in high school.  Explaining Geometry to her, it suddenly made sense to me and I enjoyed helping her understand as well.  I realized how important mathematical thinking is and how little most adolescents use critical and logical thinking. 
            I decided then to go back to school and finish my degree in Secondary Mathematics.  I was able to find a school that I could attend while still living, working and studying in New York that gave me the flexibility that I needed at the time.
            In 2011, my husband and I received invitations to sing with Utah Festival Opera for the summer.  We took the opportunity to move out of New York City and back to my hometown of Rock Springs, where I began working at the junior high and the community college as a pianist while I finished my degree.   This spring I completed my demonstration teaching across the hall from my high school Calculus teacher. 
            The path was long, but each step has made me a better teacher.  I understand gifted students because I was one once.  I can relate to students who don’t have goals, because I did not know where I was going once.  I know the opportunities that exist outside of the secondary education world and I can’t wait to share them with my students who are looking for something different.  I have worked with students who were in foster care in some of the worst neighborhoods in the Bronx and with some of the most privileged students in New York City.  I have seen students achieve remarkable results in a private school that held each student to a high standard and gave them the necessary tools to excel and think critically.  I have worked with people from all walks of life from across the country and a few from across the world.  These invaluable experiences have given me a unique view of the world that will help me help every student set and achieve their academic goals.  I can’t wait for the next adventure in my life: having my own secondary mathematics classroom and hopefully opening the eyes of some students to the beauty of mathematics and the possibilities that exist for every student.