My experiences range from teaching high school special education in an inner city school to high school administration in a somewhat rural community to teaching high school special education in a virtual high school. I believe my diverse background creates a prismatic lens through which I view education.
My education: I received a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Pacific Lutheran University in May 1989. I majored in English and minored in Special Education. I received a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership with a focus on Administration and Supervision from the University of Houston in December 1993. I began working on a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology at Walden University, but I have to admit I did not finish for a variety of reasons. I completed all my coursework with a 3.95 gpa, but left the dissertation process as I was writing Chapter 3 in 2013. Some of the topics I will explore on my blog are related to the research I completed.
My work experiences are all at the high school level and include teaching special education in an inner city school, in an urban school, in a suburban school, and in a virtual school. I served as a full-time special education department coordinator and was responsible for the IEP development of some 400 students. I was a teacher and education coordinator at a private day-treatment facility for boys where I collaborated with 14 surrounding districts. I was an assistant principal for many years before taking some time off and then returning to the classroom. I currently teach special education in a virtual high school and absolutely love it.
Thank you for taking time to read my brief bio and for stopping by my blog. I hope you will follow me on my journey as I reflect on the differences in the education of my childhood and education today.
-Darice