As a veteran teacher and teacher leader, I see the need for an accessible and practical approach in education that bridges the demands of this global environment and is able to effectively align curriculum with Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and integrate National Educational Technology Standards (NETS). Although I already hold an advanced degree in Political Science, my objective in pursuing a second advanced degree in Educational Leadership Technology is to develop the leadership skills and acquire the technological knowledge that I need to become an educational leader capable of bridging the gap between traditional pedagogical demands and the new wave of educational technologies. To achieve this requires building connections and relationships with all stakeholders.
After earning a Masters from the University of California San Diego in the area of Comparative Politics, I went on to secure a teaching credential from the University of San Diego and have taught in all areas of Social Science, grades 7 through 12 at the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts (SD SCPA) for the past seventeen years. I remain deeply committed to education, my content area, and to learning about new technologies and finding ways to use them productively in the classroom and school-wide. As the digital teacher leader and PowerSchool Lead Teacher at SCPA, I attend district workshops and participate in professional learning communities so that I can train staff to set up and use My Big Campus (MBC), NBC Learn, Illuminate, educational apps for the iPad, and troubleshoot the technical issues involved in the rollout of PowerSchool and the Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium Testing (SBAC. At the district level, I presented workshops on Moodle and on integrating technology in the classroom. I have attended several Computer Using Educator (CUE) conferences, and I presented on “Flipping World History” at the 2013 World History Association Conference. My more recent projects include creating a unit for the Intel Program Essentials on global conflicts, writing Common Core lessons that incorporate educational technologies, and developing strategies for integrating digital citizenship into my classroom instruction.
In addition to my experience with educational technologies, my years as a teacher have afforded me several leadership opportunities. I coordinated and led the History-Social Science department to develop SMART goals as part of a five-year plan to raise student achievement and improve learning outcomes, served on several steering committees such as the Department of Advanced Studies task force charged with the revision of AP District Policy, participated in a Professional Learning Community (PLC) for History-Social Science, served on a textbook evaluation and adoption committee, participated in a course redesign pilot for AP World History, and provided leadership on Governance, School Site Council, WASC, and Instructional Leadership Council. I also served as a BTSA Support Provider for several years, and have mentored several student teacher interns. Most recently, my fellow SCPA department chairs and I are leading our teachers in the transition to meet the Common Core State Standards. Our goals include developing and implementing a Common Core Action Plan, designing cross-curricular units and lessons that integrate technology and differentiate instruction, coordinating interdepartmental collaboration, and developing Common Core compliant assessments.
Current projects include developing and implementing a computer lab at SCPA to serve students without Internet and computer access and serving as an online mentor teacher for the War Comes Home program through Cal Humanities and The California History-Social Science Project. War Comes Home is an initiative that aims to raise awareness of and promote greater understanding of our veterans and explore the impact of war on communities.