I have been working with children since I was a teenager myself and have committed my professional life to advancing educational outcomes for all students. For 12 years, I have worked as a teacher at two of Pittsburgh's most rigorous and elite college preparatory schools. I started at Sewickley Academy developing a completely new math PBL curriculum from scratch for students in 1st-5th grades. This was an exciting opportunity to push into classrooms and get students and teachers excited about math from a new, more creative and hands-on perspective. Much of my work reflected the teachings and approach of Jo Boaler from Stanford University, who believes that we all have the ability to be successful in math if we have the right mindset. I progressed to teaching gifted students, worked as an elementary school teacher in grades 4 and 5, and then completed my master's in special education and became the Middle School Learning Support Teacher at Winchester Thurston School in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh. I thrived on the opportunity to work with diverse learners and help them recognize and discover their unique paths to academic success. Last year, I had the opportunity to teach language arts for a microschool company.  These eighth grade students grew tremendously in developing their identities as both readers and writers. I believe in brick and mortar but I also think that the online model provides many advantages for some learners and allows us to truly leverage all of the amazing technologies available to educators. In addition, it forces us as profressionals to be creative and look for more progressive approaches to instruction. I can't wait to see what my next adveture will be!