Where are you from?

I live in Hudsonville now, so it is a little bit of a drive.

Have you always lived in West Michigan?

No, actually I grew up in Lansing and I got my undergrad at Grand Valley and then my masters at University of Michigan. So, Grand Valley brought me to West Michigan and then I lived in Detroit for five years and that’s when I got my masters.

What brought you to Grand Haven?

I was ready for a change, more of a challenge and the option arose and I took it. It’s exciting.

What are your biggest weaknesses?

Probably taking on too much, not being able to say no or delegate very well. I like to have my hands in everything, which then comes exhaustion and the “oh maybe I should not say yes all the time or start delegating”.

What would you say are your biggest strengths?

Being a team player, being really open to suggestions and working with others and combining ideas to come up with the best solution.

What is the toughest part about teaching to kids with autism?

It’s a daily challenge. Maybe things that worked yesterday to solve a problem may not work the same today. Sometimes you don’t know what triggers them to have stress or a break down and it’s kind of like investigating. But that’s what I like about the job, you’re trying to figure out…why did they do this? How can I help them succeed? How can I not have it happen the next time?

What inspired you or who inspired you to become a special education teacher?

I was really intrigued when I was in my graduate degree [program] with psychology and the brain and how it works. So, I knew I wanted to go into special ed but I didn’t know what specifically so I just got a general special ed degree. And then after I worked at the Wayne County juvenile detention facility for three years in downtown Detroit so I was teaching English and it got me intrigued as far as a lot of the kids that were in there hadn’t been to school in a long time and the only reason they were in school is because they were locked up and it’s mandated that they be there. So, a lot of them didn’t have the skills that they should have but working one-on-one with them, you saw progress, you saw potential. That’s kind of what made me go, “I wanna go into special ed, the field of education in the special ed area.”