Bio

I was raised in a tiny Texas town, and for as long as I can remember, I've wanted to work with children in some capacity.  

While studying at Dallas Baptist University, I decided on Sociology and Psychology for my major(s) because I loved talking to, working with, and helping people, and I didn't want to be tied down to a career in education with such a specific degree.  For these reasons, I also opted for alternative certification as I knew I would someday, for some period of time, want to teach.  Immediately after graduation, I traveled to Shanghai, China to teach at an English summer camp, and it was truly a life-changing experience.  I've always been an accepting person in regard to other cultures, but teaching in China showed me how to further value and appreciate them.  

Then, the job market became impossible.  I struggled for over a year to find the career I expected when I showed people my fancy DBU degree with the Cum Laude sticker.  During this time, I did hospice care for two patients, and I can honestly say these were the most difficult challenges I have ever faced.  I cared for and loved both of these people, and watching them die was heartbreaking, but I knew this struggle also served a purpose.  Through a sweet, life-saver friend, I got a job working at Chronic Disease Fund, a nonprofit organization that helps pay for costly drug copays.  I was blessed to advance within CDF but longed to work with children again.  Which is what lead me to ECAP, the perfect alternative certification program for me.

In June 2012, I quit my job on a huge leap of faith that I would somehow land a teaching job that everyone was constantly reminding me was so impossible to find.  I applied for over 250 jobs that summer, and the last Friday of the training academy, I got the sweet phone call from a trusting principal who was willing to use her huge leap of faith on me.