I am a native of southeast Alabama with a passion for educational technology.

I earned my National Board Certification in early adolescent social studies in 2010.  I hold a B.A. in history and religion/philosophy from Samford University as well as four masters degrees from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (Master of Divinity in psychology and Master of Arts in Christian education) and Louisiana State University (Master of Social Work in health and mental health).  I completed alternative certification in gifted education at LSU in Shreveport.  I completed several summer graduate courses at LSU in Shreveport offered through the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities and attended the Colonial Williamsburg Teachers’ Institute in 2009 with their generous support. I taught middle school students in Louisiana and Alabama about the world through geography and civics.  My tools include computer games such as Minecraft Education and Civilization.*

I began my teaching career at Hamilton Terrace Learning Center, the alternative high school for Caddo Parish, Louisiana.  I later transferred into the gifted education program at Caddo Middle Magnet School, the top-ranked public middle school in Louisiana.  After a decade at CMM, I moved back to Alabama to be near my parents in 2013.  I taught at Carver Magnet School in Dothan, Alabama.  Carver was known for innovative approaches in educational technology.  Carver changed to an elementary school in the 2019-2020 school year.  I transferred to Dothan High School where I taught AP Macroeconomics, Honors Economics, Honors Government, AP Computer Science Principles, and Sociology.  When Dothan City Virtual School opened in 2021 I accepted a position teaching social studies and computer science through Zoom and other distance-learning tools.

I enjoy learning about and using technology.  I earned my A+ Certification as a computer technician in November 2013.  I served as part of the five-person team that configured 7,000 iPads for Dothan City Schools’ iConnect initiative in June 2014. I have taken credit classes on Alice, Python, Fortran, Basic, and C++ programming languages.  I used Lubuntu and Slacko Puppy Linux to run some decade-old PCs donated to our school with no hard drives.  I presented on Minecraft in Geography at the 2014 High Schools That Work (HTSW) conference in Nashville, Tennessee.

I earned the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) credential in December 2018.

In 2021 I earned my UAS (Drone) Pilot’s License from the FAA.

I became a National Certified STEM Teacher in 2022.

I am an enthusiastic educator seeking to network with peers who are passionate about advancing our field of endeavor through innovative practices and new technologies.

Disclaimers:

All opinions expressed on this site are my own, and not those of my current or former employers.

*Just to be clear, I do not own the rights to and did not create these games.  I have no formal association with the producers of these games except as a customer and fan.