I have one daughter, Evelyn, who is six years old and going to be in first grade this coming fall. My fiance, Adam, and I are currently planning our wedding for August 2016. We have been together for four years and are excited to begin our life as husband and wife. Our family also includes our pets. We have 2 dogs, Sadie and Apollo, and 1 cat, Stewie. We enjoy going on trips together, most recently we spent 3 days at Disney World over spring break. The picture to the right shows Evelyn, Adam, and myself on a riverboat at Disney World.​
The summer between getting my bachelor's degree and beginning my teaching internship, I took part in a study abroad trip with Michigan State University College of Education. We spent 6 weeks in and around Sydney, Australia. During our time there, we lived partially at Macquarie University and partially with host families.
About Me
My Family
Study Abroad
Photo Credit: My personal photo collection.
 Kangaroo and crocodile pizzas |
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 Sydney Opera House |
 Waterfall in Blue Mountains National Park, NSW |
 Three sisters rock in Blue Mountains National Park, NSW |
 Spider |
 An ostrich and myself at a petting zoo |
 Feeding kangaroos at a petting zoo |
 My host teacher's classroom |
 Paintings of world flags I did with the class |
 Bronte Beach, NSW |
 Pelican |
 Me by the bay on a camping trip our group took |
 Man playing a didgeridoo in downtown Sydney |
 Kangaroo outside our cabin |
 Sydney Harbor Bridge at night |
 Blue Mountains National Park, NSW |
 Blue Mountains National Park, NSW |
 Tree with a heart on the trunk, downtown Sydney |
 Blue Mountains National Park, NSW |
 Sydney skyline |
Our host families were families of teachers in the Sydney area and we completed field placements in their classrooms. I was placed with a 1st/2nd grade teacher in Bronte, just outside of Sydney. My time in Australia taught me the importance of high expectations and parent involvement in childrens' education. The school in which I was placed held their students to high standards and parent involvement was also high, which resulted in high achievement. This is something that has shaped the way I view education. The photo to the top right shows me standing in front of the Sydney Harbor Bridge after completing the bridge climb with a few of my travel mates. On the bottom right, you will find a slideshow of photos I took during my study abroad trip.