I love analyzing systems, building solutions, and developing others!From an early age I was fascinated with how things worked. Pulling things apart and “trying” to put them back together again. In school I excelled in science competitions: building mousetrap cars, egg-drop contraptions, and researching the mechanics and mathematical properties of trebuchets. In the US Army, on deployment, I found myself teaching soldering skills to my peers and leading as a non-commissioned officer. Our squad excelled at supporting base operations in Bagram, Afghanistan by evaluating current procedures and developing new process to be safer and more efficient. My work at DirecTV provided the opportunity to take on a variety of roles with progressive responsibilities. In each of my roles (Employee Development Coach Team Leader, Performance Consultant, Training Specialist, Quality Assurance Adviser and Development Coach) I drove organizational performance through system analysis, collaborative solution building, and developing functional expertise in employees. In my current role as a certified career technical educator in Cybersecurity, I strive to build programs that prepare students for lifelong learning and career success. This required building out and maintaining a lab environment where students practice the technical and non-technical aspects of security work. Through my district learning responsibilities as department chair, STEM committee member, and computer science committee leader, I have the chance to enhance educational opportunities for students in Caldwell. My current program started with six students four years ago and has grown to over 100 students today. Students can now earn the following certificates in the program: ITF+, A+, Network+, and Security+. My formal and informal education throughout the years have help build me into who I am today. My undergraduate degree taught me the foundations of business, through accounting and financial management. My previous graduate work strengthened my understanding of hard science and education practices. My current work in the Cyber Operations & Resilience program at Boise State is helping me develop technical and non-technical expertise in the cybersecurity field.