As part of Garland ISD's only middle school ACE (Accelerating Campus Excellence) campus, I was hired to teach English as a Second Language to 6th graders as well as support 7th and 8th graders at Lyles Middle School (now Lyles Collegiate Intermediate). Though the ACE program has since culminated, our ESL team always moves forward guiding EB students toward language acquisition as well as high-stakes test mastery, never losing sight of the importance of social-emotional learning. My campus… Show more As part of Garland ISD's only middle school ACE (Accelerating Campus Excellence) campus, I was hired to teach English as a Second Language to 6th graders as well as support 7th and 8th graders at Lyles Middle School (now Lyles Collegiate Intermediate). Though the ACE program has since culminated, our ESL team always moves forward guiding EB students toward language acquisition as well as high-stakes test mastery, never losing sight of the importance of social-emotional learning. My campus involvement has also included participation on the AVID Site Team, House Committee, and Culture Committee. With the start of the 2023-24 school year, I took on the responsibility of leading the campus Lumberjack League, a quarterly breakfast ceremony for honored students and their parents/guardians. Additionally, I have worked on the district ESL curriculum writing team, creating materials and lesson plans for both 6th and 7th grades. And, it was an honor to be presented the campus Teacher-of-the-Year distinction for the 2023-24 school year. Show less

Over the past few years, I've taken on assignments with Pearson, KAMICO Instructional Media, Inc., Green Comma (for Pearson), LearningMate Solutions (for Edgenuity), Contentra Technologies (for Pearson), and Summer Street Press (for Pearson). This curriculum-related work has revolved around the writing of both nonfiction and fiction passages for test preparation materials (often related to Science or Social Studies) and activities for teacher editions (also specifically for ELLs).

WRITING: Most recently, I wrote for the education market (specific experience under that listing here in my profile). I've written for both local and national publications (magazines, newspapers, and online publications). My work includes numerous feature articles on a variety of topics, including education, adoption, and the arts. EDITING: My work helping authors develop and complete their published works has included a nonfiction book on sales (Launch Your Sales, by Robert D… Show more WRITING: Most recently, I wrote for the education market (specific experience under that listing here in my profile). I've written for both local and national publications (magazines, newspapers, and online publications). My work includes numerous feature articles on a variety of topics, including education, adoption, and the arts. EDITING: My work helping authors develop and complete their published works has included a nonfiction book on sales (Launch Your Sales, by Robert D. Rash: https://www.launchyoursales.com/), a novel for young teens (http://www.daughterofhope.org/), an autobiographical account of one man's faith (http://fromthestartothecross.com/), and the proofreading of a manual for catastrophe adjusters. Additionally, I edited the English translation of a book originally written in Japanese and also translated into Croatian (St. Vlaho Story, by artist and author Chikako Miyosawa).COLUMNIST: Here A Mom, There A Mom was a unique parenting column that I created and co-wrote. It ran monthly in Dallas Child magazine and made special appearances in other publications around the U.S. In tandem with the column, I published an online newsletter for subscribers.BLOGGER: When my now young-adult daughter was a tween, we teamed up to cook and co-write reviews of recipes from a children’s cookbook (The Supernatural Kids Cookbook, by Nancy Mehagian) for our blog (CinnamonHeads). Show less

I taught ESL/ESOL (including conversation, grammar, and business language) to Japanese business people and doctors/medical researchers who were most often temporarily living in the U.S. due to job transfers. I've taught employees (and their families) from a multitude of companies, including Fujitsu, NEC, Texas Instruments, Tohatsu, and Muratec (Murata Machinery).

Working part-time at this private school, I primarily taught English grammar, writing, and literature to middle school students with mild learning differences. Additionally, I took on World Geography and Life Science. Focusing on individual needs, I created many of my own materials and lesson plans. This position provided me unique opportunities to create on the spot, exercise my fortitude, and grow my compassion.

On contract in Japan with this privately owned chain of schools (juku), I taught English Conversation and assisted with grammar classes. My students ranged in age from very young children to adults. I was responsible for creating many of my own materials and lessons.

I collaborated in creating, writing, and photographing educational presentations for upcoming college students. Covering a 4-state territory, I presented this information to students, teachers, counselors, and parents. These relevant and engaging presentations focused on commercial art, photography, interior design, and the music-video business.

Though my main responsibility was to assist with the programming of the playlist for the DJs, I also wrote promos, voiced promos and commercials, helped with publicity events, and supported the sales department.

After working as the Assistant Librarian for about a year, I was promoted to Librarian. Within the next few months, I inventoried and organized the entire library (comps, maps, etc.) to lend ease to the appraisers. I created a digital index of materials and organized and maintained all historic and incoming materials. I guided the appraisers with their research needs.

Following my college graduation, I signed a 1-year contract to teach and relocated to Texas. While at Grandview High School, I also advised the Yearbook.