8th Grade Social Studies
About Me
Rexburg, Idaho, has two claims to fame--it is the home of Ricks' College, now called Brigham Young University, and, more importantly, it is where I was born. Unfortunately, the claim is small as I only lived there for three months before my parents moved us to Idaho Falls, Idaho, where my father, who had been a flight instructor in World War II, managed the airport. When my mother finally convinced him that his bush pilot antics, as he flew in and out of various towns from Guadalajara to Nootka, were bringing about her imminent breakdown, he "retired" and brought a business in Gooding, Idaho, where I grew up. Later, we settled in Salt Lake City, Utah, where I went to high school.
The University of Utah (with a short stint at the University of Washington in Seattle) was next. I graduated with a degree in English and started my teaching career as an English, Speech, and Language Arts teacher in a Salt Lake City Middle School. Longing for a change of pace, I accepted a job at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology which is right next door to Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Luckily for me, I worked for an adminstrator who was developing educational workshops for MIT. Not only did I get to continue working in an academic setting, but also I was in contact with illustrious people who were able to make a difference in the world--George Schultz, Gerald Ford, Norman Dahl, Henry Kissinger--to namedrop a few.
Working in close quarters with such bright personages, ignited my desire to obtain an advanced degree so I returned to Salt Lake City and completed a Master's Degree in Education and was accepted at Stanford University where I worked towards a Ph.D. (which I never finished!) Stanford hired me as an assistant dean of Student Affairs and for seven years I lived and worked in student residences on campus.
The only negative thing about my job with Stanford was that I did not have the same schedule of vacations and holidays that the rest of family had. I went to the Palo Alto Unified School District to inquire about the possibility of teaching jobs in the near future. They were looking for an enthusiastic person with a background in drama, and since I had entertained and employed myself in college by acting, I was a likely candidate. I accepted the job, sadly left Stanford much sooner than I had anticipated, and begin a new career with great trepidation.
As much as I LOVED teaching drama, after nine years I was ready for a change. When a chance to teach a new program called "Adolescent Skills" came up, I jumped at it. The program was a drugs and alcohol prevention program which included a lot of the kind of thing that I really enjoy like enhancing self-esteem, learning decision making skills, and just plain talking with students. (Who wouldn't like that?) As much as I LOVED teaching Adolescent Skills, after five emotionally demanding years I was ready for another change. So, I took an sabbatical, went back to school, and certified to teach Social Studies, which I have now been doing for the past three years.