My Professional Journey
My journey towards becoming an educator has been long and windy, traveling through many countries and stages of my life. I have used various travel photos throughout this portfolio to express the impact travel has had on my journey. I first experienced the educational system through a summer program in Minnesota, which served the children of migrant farm workers. Next, after studying at the University of Minnesota Duluth, I volunteered with AmeriCorps at a preschool just north of Denver, Colorado, teaching English and Spanish along with the classroom teachers. Through these experiences, I not only fell in love with teaching language, but also felt that my work had a purpose. After these adventures, I moved to Santiago de Chile, where I improved my Spanish while teaching English to school children, university students, and professional adults. After moving back to the United States, I once again found myself attracted to the jobs and volunteer activities that help those in need; I found myself working with a few different amazing nonprofit organizations that enabled me to teach the importance of volunteerism to students here in Colorado, and also teach in Nicaragua and Cambodia. I eventually returned to University here in Colorado to complete my teaching endorsement, as I have always felt that education is the best way to provide help to those in need.
I started my career student teaching under a High School Special Education teacher in Edwards, Colorado. After one year of student teaching, I gained my teaching license in the areas of Special Education, and also added a Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Education endorsement. I was hired by the Telluride School District in the summer of 2012 to teach English Language Development at the high school level. While in this position I have implemented a new English curriculum and worked with various outside agencies to ensure the health and safety of our students who are fairly new to the United States. I have also worked closely with our school counselors to expose students to various post secondary options including internships, short-term programs, scholarships, and 2-4 year colleges.
While working with the Telluride School District, I have collaborated with the Foreign Language committee to implement a new bilingual program at the elementary level, as well as the Multi-Tiered System of Support committee to implement needed supports for our struggling students in the high school. I have also helped lead student groups such as the Tolerance, Anti-Bullying, and Diversity Club, which assisted students in getting to the Diversity Conference in Denver, and the Interact Club which is a service club focusing on International Exchange. In addition to this, I am currently volunteering as an Academic Advisor for the American Field Service’s International Exchange program and the Northwest Student Exchange here in Telluride, hoping to bring amazing intercultural experiences to our students.
I am currently pursuing my Reading Teacher endorsement and also conducting research in the area of English Learner Programming at the high school level. I have been providing support in the area of EL differentiation to my colleagues and will continue to improve in this area of responsibility . My goal in this research project is to improve our current systems of teaching English Learners. We hope to close the achievement gap between native–English speakers and English Learners at our school and level the playing field for ELs after high school.
In the future I hope to continue teaching and learning here in Colorado and abroad. Teaching children and teens the value of their education and seeing them take control of their situation in life is one of the most rewarding careers I can imagine. Education truly is the greatest gift to give, and I am extremely grateful to call myself a teacher.
I started my career student teaching under a High School Special Education teacher in Edwards, Colorado. After one year of student teaching, I gained my teaching license in the areas of Special Education, and also added a Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Education endorsement. I was hired by the Telluride School District in the summer of 2012 to teach English Language Development at the high school level. While in this position I have implemented a new English curriculum and worked with various outside agencies to ensure the health and safety of our students who are fairly new to the United States. I have also worked closely with our school counselors to expose students to various post secondary options including internships, short-term programs, scholarships, and 2-4 year colleges.
While working with the Telluride School District, I have collaborated with the Foreign Language committee to implement a new bilingual program at the elementary level, as well as the Multi-Tiered System of Support committee to implement needed supports for our struggling students in the high school. I have also helped lead student groups such as the Tolerance, Anti-Bullying, and Diversity Club, which assisted students in getting to the Diversity Conference in Denver, and the Interact Club which is a service club focusing on International Exchange. In addition to this, I am currently volunteering as an Academic Advisor for the American Field Service’s International Exchange program and the Northwest Student Exchange here in Telluride, hoping to bring amazing intercultural experiences to our students.
I am currently pursuing my Reading Teacher endorsement and also conducting research in the area of English Learner Programming at the high school level. I have been providing support in the area of EL differentiation to my colleagues and will continue to improve in this area of responsibility . My goal in this research project is to improve our current systems of teaching English Learners. We hope to close the achievement gap between native–English speakers and English Learners at our school and level the playing field for ELs after high school.
In the future I hope to continue teaching and learning here in Colorado and abroad. Teaching children and teens the value of their education and seeing them take control of their situation in life is one of the most rewarding careers I can imagine. Education truly is the greatest gift to give, and I am extremely grateful to call myself a teacher.