10 Professional Experience Stats

1. M.Ed from UCLA* Graduate School of Education, 1989.

*My beloved husband is a USC graduate, but I don't hold that against him.

2. California Multiple Subject Clear Professional Credential from UCLA* Graduate School of Education, 1989.

*Go Bruins.

3. B.A. in American Studies* from Occidental College, 1985.

*Beowolf was too darn hard to understand so I switched from being an English major to American Studies with a literature emphasis.  When I spent my junior year in England, studying American instead of English classics, my professors thought it was a hoot.  

4. Ventura County Teacher of the Year, 2000.

5. Ventura Unified School District Teacher of the Year *, 1999.

* I was a legend in my own lunchtime.

6. Third, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grade classroom teacher* for Ventura and Palos Verdes Unified School Districts, 1989 - 2002.

* To the parents of all the students I ever taught, please accept my apologies for all the big projects that ruined your weekends.

7. Family of Writers* creator and teacher, 1997 to the present.

* Family of Writers is my favorite thing to do (other than skiing, reading, writing, hiking, river rafting, and road tripping).

8. Fellow* of the South Coast Writing Project, located at University of California, Santa Barbara, from 1991 to 2001.

* I like fancy titles.    

9. Writing Consultant* for Palos Verdes Unified School District, teaching GATE, K-5 Writing Workshop, and Title 1 intervention students as well as providing professional growth for teachers, 2001 to the present.

* Yeah! A another fancy title for me.

10. In addition to my students (secret - they are always the best teachers in the room), these are my writing mentors: Donald Graves, Nancie Atwell, Lucy Calkins, Ralph Fletcher, Katie Wood Ray, Georgia Heard, Shelley Harwayne, Jeff Anderson, Linda Rief, Peter Elbow, Joni Chancer, Gina Rester-Zodrow. and Laura Munson (my current writing coach). If you recognize these names, you are my people (and you’re probably a teacher).