English TeacherFor 12 years I taught a variety of Language Arts and Literature Curriculum for grades 9-12. Developed curriculum mapping for all grade levels and was a part of vertical teaming with middle school Language Arts teachers. I implemented various reading strategies as well as differentiated instruction to meet the needs of my students' varying learning styles. I developed unit and lesson plans for reading, writing, speaking, and listening strategies aligned with state standards, grading rubrics, and the schools' approved curriculum where I have infused these plans with technology to enhance instruction and student engagement. I have collaborated with multiple subjects as well as special education teachers to create innovative methods to produce effective learning experiences for all students. I have also mentored and coached multiple students to help motivate and encourage their educational successes as evident by improved attendance and test scores.
|
Journalism Adviser/Multi-Media InstructorAs journalism adviser, I led my students to create various school publications to include, the school yearbook and newspaper. As technology and online publications became more popular and expected, I initiated our school's first online student-created newspaper. In addition to the publications, both print and online, I was in charge of writing the school's press releases, creating multi-media projects and presentations, and the partnership with Newspapers in Education.
As the journalism program grew, I expanded the one journalism class offered from an introductory class to a freshman/introductory level and honors level course offering. With this honors level course, I created a curriculum designed to account for more responsibility and skills and ability of the student. |
Director of Education
In this role I am working with the faculty at the Sterling and Broadway Campuses to improve instructor quality. I have created various workshops focusing on lesson planning and good teaching practices, as well as focusing on valuable professional development. As part of the mission at Laurel Technical Institute, I am working towards developing a quality education for all of our students in various fields of study from Respiratory Therapy to Welding to Cosmetology.
In this role I have been conducting classroom observations, helping instructors develop their teaching skills providing them with the tools to help them to be successful in the classroom. I am also a member of a mentoring team to mentor new instructors in their roles as instructors. I have also initiated Professional Learning Committees for our instructors to provide a more academia environment among our faculty members. |
General Education Instructor |
Online Instructor |
As a General Education Instructor, I have taught various computer-based courses such as, CMP 113-Introduction to Computers, CMP 161 Adobe Acorbat, CSA 132-Microsoft Word, CSA 134 Microsoft Excel, and CSA 235 Website Design with HTML5. Being a general education instructor allows me to see a plethora of the students attending Laurel with diverse learning backgrounds.
With each of these courses it is my goal as the instructor to ensure my students master the skills required for each course, as in most cases these courses are prerequisites for their field of study. I also have developed plans and modules that go beyond these general education classes to help prepare my students for their upper level program classes. For instance, many of my students were struggling with APA formatting and had many questions about how to do this. In the Intro to Computer class I created a module that still fit the curriculum, but went further in depth with how to use Microsoft Word and Owl Purdue to properly cite and format a paper in APA style. With each writing assignment I saw my students gain confidence not just in their writing, but also in their understanding of citations, plagiarism, and the APA style. I am continuing to grow as an post-secondary instructor and continue to look for ideas and ways to help my students grow and be successful. |
Online courses have become more a part of the fabric of higher level education in colleges and universities, as part of my duties as a General Education Instructor at Laurel, I also teach EMP 144 Customer Service online. This course is solely online and reaches students at all of our campuses from Sharon, PA to Uniontown, PA and Meadville, PA to Morgantown, WV.
Since this course is online only, I use our Learning Resource System, Canvas, to design my course and set up modules for my students to complete each week for the duration of the semester. As a way to make the course seem more personalized and personal for the students, I utilize our discussion boards to ensure "classroom discussions" for each module/week, and then I also record my power points/lectures using Presentious. Students in this course not only learn about how to handle various customer service issues, they also learn how to problem-solve, how to be empathetic to others, and how to effectively communicate in an online environment. To make an online course work, the instructor needs to present and involved with the students' progress or in some cases, lack thereof. Being a member of the Distance Education Committee has allowed for myself and other online instructors and assistant directors to discuss student progress and how to improve our online courses for the betterment of our students. |
Photo Credit: Jenna Murtagh, student at NDHS
|