I graduated from Tarleton State University with a degree in Interdisciplinary Business and then pursued my passion, working with children, and received my MS in Child and Family Development from Texas State University. While attending college I taught at numerous summer camps, worked as a nanny and then at a group foster home. During graduate school I was a graduate assistant, working with the director at a model Child Development Center for the University which served 120 children ages 6 weeks through pre-k. I am also a certified child life specialist, completing my internship at Doernbecher Children's Hospital. Every day the children bring a smile to my face and remind me of how precious life is and what a wonder the world can be through their eyes.

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I moved back to the Beaverton area in July of 2006 from Denver, Colorado after being gone for more than 15 years. I graduated in 1984 from Beaverton High School and have an associates degree and certificate in Early Childhood Education from Metro State College in Denver. I also have met my director qualifications by Colorado state standards. The love, nurturing, and guidance of young children has been a passion and field of choice of mine for the past twenty years.

I have an elementary aged daughter named Mackenzie who is settling in nicely to her new home state. We both love being here in Oregon and our new schools. The play based curriculum of VCP fits in well with my own philosophy on Early Childhood Education. I believe that children learn through the hands on experience which encourages them to explore and discover the outcomes of their own manipulations. Through their own manipulations children gain cognitive skills, independence, trust and awareness of themselves and others.

“Tell me and I’ll forget;
show me and I may remember,
involve me and I’ll understand.”

Chinese Proverb

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I recently moved to Oregon with my husband and we are loving it! Excited to say good bye to Wisconsin winters, eager to ski the mountains and walk the beaches and amazed to be forbidden to pump our own gas. We feel we have really found a great home here in the Portland area.

Before moving out here, I was a 2 ½'s/3's teacher at a preschool in Madison, Wisconsin. I have my degree in Early Childhood Education (preschool through 3rd grade) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I hold fast to the idea that:

"One child may use a ladder,
another build a rocket ship,
another fly,
but each child can reach the stars."

I hope that each child I work with will understand the power of positive choices and know that they have infinite value.

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My husband, Mike, and I live with our two boys in the Raleigh Hills neighborhood. Our boys, Stephen and Matt, currently attend Beaverton High School; one is a senior and one is a sophomore. Actually, I grew up in this neighborhood (in the same house we currently live in) and went to Raleigh Park, Whitford and Beaverton High School. After high school, I went to Oregon State University where I received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Even though I graduated in business, my first love was working with children. When our children were born, I quit work and became active in our children's school doing everything from classroom help and fundraising to helping in the cafeteria. Even with our kids in high school, I still work in their school and actively participate in their sports activities. Outside of school, I was involved in coaching soccer and helping with the youth football program for the Beaverton area.

In 2005, opportunity knocked and I was able to work for Valley Christian Preschool. I absolutely love working with preschool children. They are like a sponge and love to learn. I feel if we watch children long enough we might learn a few things ourselves.

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I was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. My husband, Mike, and I have two daughters Amy and Megan.

I previously worked for the Beaverton School District as a classified substitute, and have been an active volunteer at both of my daughters' schools. The thing that I enjoy the most about working with children is that no two days are ever alike. It is so amazing to look at the world through each child's eyes and watch their creative imaginations at work as each day brings new adventures and discoveries.

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I have a BA in Social Ecology from the University of California, Irvine, with a specialization in psychology and social behavior.  I enjoy being with children and listening to the stories they tell. To be part of the children's lives here is a joy for me.

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