I have been teaching math at the high school level for 30 years and am excited to retire from full-time teaching at the conclusion of the 2023/2024 school year! I obtained an associates degree in agricultural mechanics upon graduating from high school and worked in that field for a few years. I decided to pursue engineering and went back to college to take some math courses as I only had one year of math in high school. As I was taking math courses, my aunt suggested I take an intro to...
I have been teaching math at the high school level for 30 years and am excited to retire from full-time teaching at the conclusion of the 2023/2024 school year! I obtained an associates degree in agricultural mechanics upon graduating from high school and worked in that field for a few years. I decided to pursue engineering and went back to college to take some math courses as I only had one year of math in high school. As I was taking math courses, my aunt suggested I take an intro to education course which I did. I really enjoyed that course and the idea of teaching math began to appeal to me since I had struggled to learn algebra while in high school. I earned my Bachelor of Science in Mathematics with an emphasis on education from Illinois State University in May of 1994 and began teaching at a local high school. I returned to college to earn my Masters' Degree in educational leadership from St. Xavier University.
Throughout the course of my 30 year career, I have taught pre-algebra, algebra 1, geometry, trigonometry, and Cisco Computer Networking. Geometry is my favorite course to teach as we live in a geometric world, hence geometry is all around us. Whatever math course I am teaching/tutoring, I always strive to relate the topic to something in the student's life that has meaning. I also am able to break down more complicated topics into smaller components and strive to give the student various pneumonic devices and analogies to remember concepts or steps.
I believe effecting teaching only happens when effective relationships are formed. I always strive to show respect and empathy towards my students. I know what it is like to struggle to learn math and it didn't come easily to me; so I am able to empathize with the student who is struggling. I always try to meet the student where he/she is currently and then help them grow in mathematical knowledge!
I am looking forward to tutoring you and helping you succeed in your current mathematics course!
