My Education
I graduated magna cum laude in 1999 from Clemson University with a degree in Elementary Education.
I earned my masters degree in Educational Policy in 2003 from the University of Pennsylvania.
My Teaching Experience
1999-2001
I began my teaching career in South Carolina in a small town called York, right outside of Charlotte, NC. I taught Reading/Language Arts and Math to seventh graders.
2001-2020
For most of my tenure here at Brigantine, I taught in the middle school. I taught 7th and 8th grade Math and Algebra for the majority of that time. I also taught 6th grade Math and 5th grade Math. Teaching all those grade levels prepared me for my next assignment as middle school Basic Skills Math Instructor for grades 5 through 8 as I have a knowledge of each grade level and can connect the dots for my students while pulling from the bag of tricks I have developed over the years. I also taught Enrichment to grades 4 through 6.
2020-2024
I expanded my teaching repertoire to include third grade math, science, and social studies. These years were full of singing and imagination in our Hogwarts world.
2024-2026
I moved back to middle school BSI, but in addition to a couple of math classes, I also worked with ELA classes. I worked with first graders in math and ELA, too--another new experience.
2026-Present
This year brings another new journey! I am teaching 7th and 8th grade Social Studies, which is a two year study of American History. This will be an adventure, and I look forward to our exploration through "time travel" and storytelling. I also have the joy of coaching our Think Day Training Squad and Think Day Junior where I hope to foster a love of absorbing knowledge.
My Personal Life
I grew up in Laurens, South Carolina, a small Southern town. We lived on the family farm where we could wander the old barns, roam the vast fields, hop on hay bales, and ride horses. It was a great place to develop the imagination.
I have two sons: William (age 18) and Charles (age 15). William completed his third year as an Ocean City lifeguard and is now a freshman at the University of South Carolina in their Honors College, majoring in mechanical engineering. He plans to compete on their club swim team and play trumpet with one of the university's jazz ensembles. Charles competes with the Ocean City junior lifeguard competition team. He is a freshman at Egg Harbor Township High School where he runs track/cross country, plays the saxophone, and sings in the choir. He also acts in plays and swims for the EHT Seahawks. They both love Star Wars, the Marvel Universe, all things Disney, Harry Potter, and gaming on Xbox.
My husband is a physics/science teacher and student coordinator at Oakcrest High School. He can also be found refereeing high school and middle school soccer games, and he coaches EHT High School boys soccer. You could see him around at local games. Some of my former students have moved to Mays Landing and have had him as a teacher, too!
Teaching is my life. I try to be the best educator I can in all walks of my life, and I aim to teach my students as I would want my own children to be taught.