MY STORY BEGINS...
in Brockway, Pennsylvania where I grew up with my parents (Jim & Diane) and younger sister, Megan. My mom sewed costumes for our family every Halloween.
Minnie, Daisy, Donald & Mickey
Goldilocks & the Three Bears
The Flintstones
My sister and I spent a lot of time playing together. At Grandma Devlin's house we learned how to play cards and bocce ball. We liked to perform our own shows for her in the basement. Our grandma made the BEST chocolate chip cookies!
My mom took to us to public library frequently so we had new books at home all the time. My batman figurines, batmobile and batcave were my favorite toys. I had a Giga Pet, Talkboy recorder, Creepy Crawlers, Stretch Armstrong and a collection of Disney movies on VHS. The popular item back then to collect was pogs.
I was a shy and quiet kid that adored my 1st grade teacher, Miss Worokey. I liked school and had perfect attendance from 1st grade to 12th grade. I spent a lot of time daydreaming about the type of teacher I wanted to become when I grew up. My sister, friends, neighbors and I played school in our basement. I always wanted to be the teacher and found creative ways to teach my lessons.
My 1st Grader Teacher
Using a video camera, I filmed a lot of cheesy music videos with my sister and friends. I loved using technology and learned how to edit videos which enabled me to later become a wedding videographer.
When I was in high school I played soccer and was involved in the drama club. My favorite role to play was Seymour in "Little Shop of Horrors." Sometimes I was teased for being overweight or having feminine characteristics, but I prevailed. Theater made me more confident. My Class of 2003 classmates voted me "Most Friendly" in our yearbook superlatives.
I studied to become an English teacher at Waynesburg University. While there I participated in cross country, track & field, along with the campus radio station. I made a lot of really great friends in college! Over our spring breaks we built homes in Florida with Habitat for Humanity. With other classmates, I traveled to Guatemala twice to volunteer in a nutritional center for children.
AFTER COLLEGE,
I started teaching high school English in 2007 at my Alma Mater in Brockway, Pennsylvania. I always looked for innovative ways to make British literature interesting for teenagers. I also used a lot of technology! During that time I coached cross country, advised the student council and chaired the English Department.
In 2013, I was selected as the Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year. I assisted the Pennsylvania Department of Education in writing the Pennsylvania Core English Language Arts Curriculum Maps and the Pennsylvania Learns iTunes University courses. In 2014 I was selected as a finalist for National Teacher of the Year and was honored at the White House by President Barack Obama and Dr. Jill Biden.
President Barack Obama
First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden
During a NASA Space Camp for educators, I became close friends with Australian principal Kate Smith. A year later, I moved to Australia to teach "Year 2" (aka 2nd grade) at her primary school in Canberra, Australia. It was the most incredible year of my life! I saw kangaroos on a regular basis and was introduced to a plethora of new cultures working in a school that included students from over 55 different countries. I included a lot of picture books in my instruction and started coming up with creative stories of my own I wanted to write.
Currently, I teach multimedia at Fox Chapel Area High School in Pittsburgh. My courses are electives for students in grades 9 - 12 who want to learn about the various elements of video production. Students also produce video content for the Swift Fox Media YouTube channel.
My students produced this award-winning documentary about Fred Rogers:
