ABOUT
Education:
I was born on Long Island, New York, and attended Rocky Point Schools for my entire early education all the way up to my high school graduation in the class in 2000. After exploring studies as a Criminal Justice major, I began a degree in Multidisciplinary Studies - which included art, theater, and general sciences - at Stony Brook University and graduated with that degree in 2005. Following two years of work in a verity of fields, in 2007 I went on to study for three more years and complete two more bachelor degrees at Oswego State University; one in Adolescent Education and a second in American History. In 2013 I began a master's degree in Educational Leadership with Grand Canyon University; a degree that I completed in July 2015.
I was born on Long Island, New York, and attended Rocky Point Schools for my entire early education all the way up to my high school graduation in the class in 2000. After exploring studies as a Criminal Justice major, I began a degree in Multidisciplinary Studies - which included art, theater, and general sciences - at Stony Brook University and graduated with that degree in 2005. Following two years of work in a verity of fields, in 2007 I went on to study for three more years and complete two more bachelor degrees at Oswego State University; one in Adolescent Education and a second in American History. In 2013 I began a master's degree in Educational Leadership with Grand Canyon University; a degree that I completed in July 2015.
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Work Abroad:
From 2010, after graduating from Oswego State University, I began teaching in South Korea in Poly School, Daegu. I worked with students ranging from ages 4-16 years of age, all of whom were ELL/ESL students. My second year in South Korea led me to the public school system with Pyeongsan Elementary School in Ulsan where I taught ELL/EFL 5th and 6th graders. |
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Beginning in January 2013, I began working in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for SCYE Global under contract by FELDA and the Malaysian government as a college lecturer for a City And Guilds, UK, certified ESL program. I also, in that time, had the opportunity to work with young learners in Trolak and led the start-up of a new English department at the FELDA Trolak College. Later, I was internally promoted in SCYE Global as the Academic Project Manager where I led multiple company educational projects and ventures.
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Following my experiences in Malaysia, from mid-2014 to early 2015, was a new opportunity in Beijing, China, with Wall Street English as a Foreign Teacher for adult education. Having experienced all age levels of learning was of great benefit to me as an educator and allowed me the opportunity to have a full perspective on education, how it develops and how it changes throughout life - but also the aspects of education that remain the same; the appeal of an educator to learners. I left Wall Street English to see to the final steps of completion of my master's degree back in America.
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I then found myself in Taipei, Taiwan, from 2015-2016 teaching English through social sciences to grades 7-12 to ELL/ESL learners. My time in Taiwan was a turning point in my career as an educator. Though the experience was refreshing with my involvement in the social sciences, I was ready for more. With the ability and education for a position in administration, I began to seek an opportunity where I would grow into some of my full potential and realize my career goals.
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Finding employment at Saint Paul American School in 2016, located in Beijing, I taught Honors World History, AP World History, World Government, and AP Psychology was just the stepping stone I needed to build myself as an administrator. I was highly involved in many of the administrative tasks at SPAS from the onset of my employment, from the classroom to campus culture, and quickly established myself as a task-oriented educator with a deep interest in making an impact on a larger stage.
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Administration:
I became the Dean of Student at Saint Paul American School and held the position from March of 2017 to June 2019. My two biggest achievements were to reduce school negative behaviors by 90% and to replace negative behaviors with positive behavior reinforcers - the SPAS Houses and House Point system. |
After accomplishing these goals in the role of Dean, and insuring that both systems were engrained into the school's culture, I once again considered a larger role to expand my career. I was offered a new role in 2019 as the Curriculum Development Specialist with NISS/SPASS, which was accompanied by an Assistant Principal title for all SPAS schools. I began supporting SPAS schools and administrators in Korea, China, and the Philippines as well as leading and completing dozens of academic projects. This quickly led to a new project in Myanmar in late 2019/early 2020 to start a new SPAS school that was slated to become the shining jewel of education in Asia. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the project never took root, and the site of the school was converted into a hospital.
The world changed with the pandemic, and COVID19 divided teachers, administrators, and students from the schools and home countries world-wide. In particular, for me, I was asked to take on the role of Principal in early 2020 for the Beijing SPAS school and the Two-Plus-One program, where teachers, students and parents were fragmented by the pandemic. I agreed to take on a year and a half contract to fill the gap, and get the school back on track, which involved risking my health and safety to fly to China during a period in history of national lockdowns. Beijing's school enrollment remained stable while I was placed in the role, and even topped 300 students from the typical annual enrollment of 260.
A stable Beijing SPAS and a new incoming Principal meant that I was able to explore new projects, new countries, and new experiences. I found a position in Tokyo as a Founding Middle School Principal for the United School of Tokyo. Living in Japan for one year, and encountering some new ideas, was the refreshing restart I needed following my highly stressful yet successful work during the pandemic. I made the decision to return to the SPAS network to be amongst friends, colleagues, and systems I had built, and take on the role of School Principal at Saint Paul American Scholars.
Today:
Scholars is undergoing rapid change and refinement. As we expand the secondary program, expand our use of standards, provide more in-depth training for our staff, focus on ELL support, and revisit all of our policies; we will essentially be relaunching the school for the 2023-2024 school year. It's quite an exciting time to be a part of the school, and I look forward to all of our efforts soon bearing fruit.
Scholars is undergoing rapid change and refinement. As we expand the secondary program, expand our use of standards, provide more in-depth training for our staff, focus on ELL support, and revisit all of our policies; we will essentially be relaunching the school for the 2023-2024 school year. It's quite an exciting time to be a part of the school, and I look forward to all of our efforts soon bearing fruit.
