I am a hardworking teacher, striving to implement rigorous North Carolina State Standards to promote academic excellence for all learners, no matter their individual learning style. Being an educator is who I am. I was born to educate, despite how cliché that sounds. Inspired by my first/second grade teacher, I have accepted my calling to inspire kids to learn and grow academically and personally. My mission is to motivate and inspire my students to reach for their goals, always believing they can be attained. There is no greater feeling than watching a student's eyes light up when they have an "Aha!" moment. Through my journey as an educator, I have been fortunate to be named "Rookie Teacher of the Year" at Brightwood Elementary in 2004, becoming a National Board Certified teacher in 2009, as well as publishing two articles during my graduate school work at Liberty University (2013-2014):-Article published in iManager's "Journal of Educational Technology" Oct.-Dec '13 issue, entitled, "Educational Technology and Its Effective Use."-Article published in iManager's "Journal of Educational Technology" Jan-Mar '14 issue, entitled, "Leadership in Educational Technology."One article, "Educational Technology and Its Effective Use," was presented in January 2015, at the Hawaii International Conference on Education.I look forward to opportunities that allow me to learn and connect with my colleagues in order to advance our educational system.