"The highest fences we need to climb are those we've built within our minds."

For me, math is like a puzzle or a game. I like working on solving problems, especially in a group. I'm not a math genius, but I've come to realize that being successful in math has more to do with patience, endurance, and tenacity than any natural ability. In fact, I enrolled in Calculus in college just to prove wrong the people who said I couldn't do it. And to my surprise I fell in love with math! I went on to earn a B.A. in Math and Physics from Mills College.

I was a high school math teacher for 7 years. During that time I earned my MEd from East Tennessee State University while teaching high school math at the laboratory school on campus. That "two-year" Masters program took me five years to complete since I was working full time and raising my son while taking classes in the evening and online. As a teacher at the laboratory school I conducted classroom Action Research on textbook literacy and alternative assessment.

After I completed my degree, I worked for two years as the Math Program Director for the Prison University Project at San Quentin. I worked with inmates enrolled in an AA degree program. My primary task was to organize and restructure the pre-college math program for students who needed to improve their math skills before enrolling in the college credit math classes. Through that experience I discovered how much I enjoy helping adults overcome the math barrier and achieve their dream of a college degree.

I am curious about the world and always interested in learning new ideas and new ways to solve problems. I am especially interested in neuroscience and understanding how our brains learn, memorize, retain, and recall information. I am also interested in philosophy, anthropology, and languages.

Outside of teaching, my hobbies are beekeeping, traveling, and learning Spanish.