Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
Master of Science - - 2023
Educational Technology and Media Leadership
Teacher Librarian Credential
Special Class Authorization
California State University, Long Beach
Master of Education - - 2004
Multiple Subject BCLAD Credential
(Bilingual Cross-cultural Language in Academic Development)
University of California, Los Angeles
Thesis: Identity as Scientists: Can teaching science as inquiry help build students’ identities as scientists?
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology - - 2002
University of California, Los Angeles
Minor: Women’s Studies
TEACHING AND EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE
Teacher Librarian 2022 – Present
Foshay Learning Center, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Curated a high quality, current book collection that supported school curricula, students driven inquiry, and high interest reading.
- Oversaw the ordering, cataloging, and shelving books for the historic LAUSD Library Refresh project 2023-2024.
- Built community engagement through collaboration with the parent center and organizations to provide parent workshops.
- Developed a student library leadership team to support the library during lunch and facilitate the student use of space for programming and showcases.
- Collaborated with teachers to implement lessons to enrich curriculum and organize library visits, independent reading and the Accelerated Reader program to monitor student progress and differentiate instruction.
- Developed materials and implemented Professional development to support teacher unit writing for the International Baccalaureate program.
- Member of the Teacher Librarian Cadre for LAUSD. Collaborated with a team of teacher librarian leaders to provide professional development for TLs to align programs to district goals.
International Baccalaureate Coordinator (Middle Years Program) 2020 – 2021
Foshay Learning Center, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Assess the needs of the school in order to create a long term and short-term plan to prepare for program accreditation.
- Plan and deliver differentiated and targeted professional development to a K-12 staff of over 80 teachers and administrators.
- Connect with department teams and individuals in order to coach teachers in writing units of inquiry and designing projects in order to foster critically thinking, globally minded citizens.
- Facilitate and manage the logistics of a school wide events in order to foster collaboration, school community, and to showcase classroom Project Based Learning experiences.
- Develop relationships with parents, local groups, neighboring organizations, and institutions in order to connect teachers to the community resources to create classrooms and curricula that are student-centered and rooted in social justice.
Middle School Teacher 2016 – 2020
Foshay Learning Center, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Designed and implemented collaborative and integrated International Baccalaureate units schoolwide for sixth grade classrooms
- Created and implemented longitudinal large- and small-scale project-based learning experiences for students
- Designed, implemented, and analyzed formative and summative assessments to evaluate instruction quality and student progress
- Re-designed grade level curriculum to include Visible Learning strategies and language objectives in all lessons and units
- Created and utilized digital resources to create a blended classroom, complete with classroom lessons and online portfolios accessible to students and parents
- Significantly improved overall student performance in mathematics on the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) exam from grade 5 to grade 6
K-5 Dual Language Classroom Teacher 2005 – 2016
Alexander Science Center School, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Created a learner-centered classroom with a focus on collaborative projects, peer feedback, and authenticity.
- Expertise in dual immersion team teaching and co-planning with six consecutive cohorts as the Spanish language teacher (grades K-2)
- Developed a bilingual, integrated curricula for a self-contained dual immersion classroom with an emphasis in developing the target language (Spanish) through art and science (grades 3-5)
- Model teacher; classroom used for demonstration and trainings for dual immersion and science instruction
- Designed assessments for, and maintained, language development portfolios for both Spanish and English for all students.
- Adapted Foss Science investigations to include high-level inquiry and targeted language scaffolds.
- Backwards planned units and lessons with strategic emphasis on academic vocabulary, language production objectives, and higher order thinking skills.
- Collaborated and team taught with grade level teachers to create temporary homogeneous math learning groups across three classrooms to provide differentiated instruction for specific key concepts.
- Wrote and directed a multi-media school wide social justice presentation in celebration of African American History highlighting the plight and trauma of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Inspired hesitant student-performers to take leadership roles which complemented their interests. Yielded mass praise from colleagues, students and parents alike.
Fourth Grade Waiver to Basic Bilingual Teacher 2004 – 2005
Eastman Ave Elementary School, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Completed formal writing apprenticeship program with Lead Writing Coach. Observed roll-out lessons, shadow-planned units of study, and acquired and applied unit and planning and instructional strategies.
- Designed and conducted research on Project and Inquiry Based Science Instruction for Masters thesis. Implemented varied methodology: student interviews, video analysis, analyzed student artifacts & analyzed student complexity of self-representations to assess expansiveness of student schemas and identities.
- Expanded district mandated math program to include Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI).
- Collaborated and teamed with resource teacher to provide accommodations to a large cohort of students with Individual Education Plans, who were integrated into a general education classroom.
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
Daedalus Teacher Collective
Founder & Executive Director 2016 – Present
The Daedalus Teacher Collective is a non-profit organization that provides a network of support for educators in order to transform teachers to in turn nurture the potential for growth of each and every child in partnership with the community with which they work.
- Founded a state and federally registered non-profit organization
- Recruited fellow founding members of the executive board
- Develop a mission and vision statement
- Articulated an organizational constitution, and designed a plan for operations
- Recruited and trained inaugural board members
- Oversee and facilitate organization’s work
- Develop long-term and short goals for the organizational of the mission. Establish meeting agendas and oversee board meetings
- Researched and implemented a plan for long term development; successful bid for both in-kind and cash contributions from funders, including both public and private sector funders.
Innovate and Integrate Institute, Daedalus Teacher Collective
Writer, coordinator and presenter 2016 – Present
Founded an annual week-long professional learning institute centered on the integration of art through science and project- based learning
- Researched and wrote professional development curriculum that incorporates high level science content, the Next Generation Science Standards and Science and Engineering practices, along with art and creativity in collaborative projects
- Recruit and secure content experts to present on a variety of topics
- Train co-facilitators on protocols and content for different sessions
- Support participating teachers in implementing integrated curriculum in their classrooms during the instructional year
- Collaborate with the Los Angeles Unified School District to offer participating teacher’s salary point opportunities
- Partner with various institutions such as California Science Center, the Natural History Museum, and the School of Visual and Performing Arts at UCLA to secure Institute locations and content experts
Teacher Development & Enrichment Workshops 2017-Present
Daedalus Teacher Collective
Writer, Coordinator and Presenter
- Design and implement ongoing quarterly workshops
- Focused on promotion of teacher and student wellness
- Facilitate the support of teachers in planning and implementing innovative interdisciplinary curriculum
- Create an environment of encouraging teacher networking and professional enrichment
Sixth Grade Lead Teacher 2016 – Present
Foshay Learning Center, Los Angeles Unified School District, South Los Angeles, CA
- Responsible for setting grade level agendas and facilitating collaboration and planning sessions
- Represent grade level at school leadership meetings
- Coordinate instructional rounds where teachers collaboratively identify problem of practice and create curricular and teaching solutions
- Organize assemblies in to promote school and grade level culture and community
- Coordinate and supervise sixth grade summer bridge program
Curriculum Specialist
2016 – Present
Neighborhood Academic Initiative
Collaborative pre-college program with USC and Foshay Learning Center, designed to prepare students for admission to a college or university.
- Collaborate with the program director to evaluate the efficacy of the current instructional programs
- Develop and coordinate special academic programs for increased student engagement
- Plan, organize and facilitate the middle school Family Development Institute Jr.; a yearlong series of parent engagement workshops
- Design and implement ongoing 6th grade summer bridge program
- Develop relationships with outside institutions such as the Natural History Museum in order to provide programs such as “Innovation Day: Archeology Adventures” and parent workshops
- Write and teach math Saturday Academy curriculum designed to fill in academic gaps while simultaneously increasing academic rigor through Cognitively Guided Instruction and conceptual learning
Guiding Teacher, Los Angeles Unified School District 2008 – 2019
Supervise student teachers in education programs for UCLA Teacher Education Program (TEP), UCLA Visual and Performing Arts Education (VAPAE), and USC. Mentor student teachers, facilitate collaborative planning, provide lesson feedback, and develop collegial relationships. (add UCLA VAPAE…not sure how you want to word all of this)
School Professional Development Coordinator 2018 – 2019
Foshay Learning Center
- Maintained school year long calendar of district and school site professional development sessions
- Created and distributed agendas and documentation for all PD and collaborative meetings
- Designed and implemented a yearlong series of International Baccalaureate differentiated workshops for faculty
- Designed and delivered professional development needs survey. Analyzed and transformed data to present to leadership team for schoolwide decisions
Summer Bridge Coordinator August, 2017
Foshay Learning Center
- Determined program objectives and methods of evaluation for program
- Designed schedule and curriculum to support sixth graders in their transition to middle school
- Trained and supervised a team of teachers for the duration of the program
- Tended to administrative responsibilities such as enrollment, attendance, supplies and other duties as required
MOCA PD Lab Collaborator 2015 – 2017
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
A convening, at the Museum of Contemporary Art, of visual arts and classroom teachers from across Los Angeles in a supportive community of practice. This group of teachers discuss art, arts education, professional development, and policies in order to advocate for the arts in schools.
Teachers Talking with Teachers (T3) Symposia 2014 – Present
Family of Schools (FOS), University of Southern California
FOS consists of 15 schools surrounding the University Park and Health Sciences campuses. The program focuses on providing a quality education to 17,000 children in the local neighborhoods— accessible to neighborhood children.
2014 First Inaugural T3 Conference
2015 Cultivating Creativity in the Common Core
2016 Visual Literacy Across the Curriculum
2017 Redefining Podcasts for the Classroom
2018 Mindfulness in the Classroom
2019 Writing to Heal: Teacher Wellness
Family of Schools Facilitator 2012 – Present
Family of Schools (FOS), University of Southern California
- Liaison for securing resources and programmatic opportunities for the targeted school site
- Attended monthly meetings to get information about ongoing programs and information from local organizations
- Managed the logistics and maintained communications with programs as they were implemented at the school site
- Provided a monthly report of all programs and services provided at the school site
- Provided feedback and worked with teams to solve problems and increase the effectiveness of current programs.
USC Viterbi K-12 Robotics and Coding Academy Program 2014 – 2017
Lead Teacher, Alexander Science Center School and Foshay Learning Center
- Wrote curriculum for a yearlong after school program utilizing the Dash Robot
- Integrated programming and engineering in the core curriculum
- Trained and supervised teams of college students who worked with students in an after-school robotics program
- Recruited and monitored student enrollment and participation
Trash for Teaching with LAUSD July, 2016
Curriculum Specialist and Presenter, Gardena, CA
- Wrote Kindergarten STEAM unit that incorporated NGSS science standards, and engineering project, and the Watt’s Towers in Los Angeles
- Produced support materials for students and teachers to accompany unit
- Presented to a cohort of teachers at a week-long institute
- Facilitated teachers in writing their own STEAM units
Science Lead Teacher 2012 – 2016
Alexander Science Center School
- Facilitated school wide and grade level collaboration for curriculum and project
- Developed Rubrics and assessment tools for faculty to use across grade levels
- Designed and Implemented professional development and training for faculty
- Attended district trainings to bring back to school site
Target Language Proficiency Project 2013-2015
Los Angeles Unified School District
- Received in depth training on language acquisition and language proficiency levels using the ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) scale
- Certified and trained to use the MOPI (Modified Oral Language Proficiency Interview)
- Worked over the years with a team of teachers, national experts, and the Dual Language Office in order to develop target language (language other than English) standards
- Worked to use the articulate objectives in order to develop progress monitoring portfolios
- Collaborated with a district wide team in order to come to consensus about true and viable second language goals for students participating in dual language programs across the district to produce a useful and comprehensive report card
Getty Teacher Advisory Committee Member 2012-2015
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Participated for several years in a group that met quarterly in order to support the museum’s education programs by:
- Providing feedback on curriculum
- Write and publish lessons for Getty.edu website
- Piloting lessons and providing student artifacts for review
- Evaluating museum education programs and providing ideas on how to improve their outreach and offerings
Professional Development Committee 2009 – 2015
Alexander Science Center School
- Collaborated with committee members to create and administer professional development needs assessment survey, analyzed data to develop school site professional development calendar,
- Assisted in the coordination of weekly presenters, presented professional development sessions in areas of expertise, and created and facilitated professional development workshops for topics such as science Notebooking, Common Core State Standards and strategies, project-based learning, etc.
- Designed and implemented multi-year Writer’s Workshop training and coaching for teachers
- Facilitated grade level lesson study cycles
Dual Language Coordinator 2006 – 2010
Alexander Science Center School
- Led team meetings to implement curricular content and evaluate program structure and student assessment.
- Created instructional material and trained teachers regarding a Language Acquisition Approach.
- Trained teachers and staff on Dual Language theory and second language acquisition.
- Designed and implemented program wide quarterly parent workshops on various topics such as second language acquisition, literacy, technology as a tool and community building events.
- Responsible for the development of enrollment/recruitment materials and procedures.
SELECTED PANELS AND PRESENTATIONS
Panelist October, 2017
Southwestern Law School, Los Angeles
Addressing the Disconnection between Advocates, Policy Makers and Classroom Connections, Closing the Justice Gap for California’s Youth Conference
Presenter October, 2016
MOCA PD Lab: Think Sync Drink
Los Angeles
Session: “How Can We Transform Teachers to Transform Education?”
Presenter September, 2015
MOCA PD Lab: Think Sync Drink
Los Angeles
Session: “Comfortable Being Uncomfortable: Stretching to Learn”
Presenter May, 2015
J. Paul Getty Museum Art and Social Justice Teacher Workshop
Session: “Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives”
Presenter
California Science Teachers’ Association Conference December, 2014
Long Beach
Session: Mastering Models
Presenter May, 2014
Teaching Channel: Arts Integration Series, available at
Integrating the Arts in Education
Video: Encouraging Student Debate
Video: Claims, Evidence, Reasoning
Video: Studying Balance in Art and Science
Video: Evaluating Art Through Different Lenses
Presenter April, 2011 J. Paul Getty MuseumArt and Language Arts Conference
Los Angeles
Session: “Pretty Ugly? Grotesque Art and Poetry”
GRANTS, FELLOWSHIPS, SCHOLARSHIPS and HONORS
Harvard Project Zero 2019
Received a scholarship to attend a week-long professional learning institute through the Harvard Graduate School of Education. During this week I attended workshops and lectures on multiple relevant and contemporary topics in education with a major emphasis on “Visible Learning” or thinking routines.
UCLA Hammer Museum Classroom in Residence 2016-2017
Selected to join a yearlong partnership with UCLA VAPAE (Visual and Performing Arts Education) Program and the Hammer Museum educators in order to design a unit that integrated classroom content, works of art, VAPAE standards, and a week-long visit with a class of students at the museum.
Target Language Proficiency Project Fellowship 2016
Selected to be part of a team to write exemplar units that incorporated the target language proficiency standards or “Can Do Statements.” In the course of this fellowship we were trained in writing units with the International Baccalaureate model with an additional focus on incorporated language proficiency and cultural competence.
TeachPlus Fellowship 2013-2015
Teamed with a cohort of teachers to learn more about education policy, leadership in education, and how to have a broader impact. Participated in weekly trainings and seminars, as well as collaborate, with groups for over two years to implement policy changes in the teacher’s union and to organize conferences in order to support the rollout of the Common Core State Standards in California.
Getty Arts and Language Arts 2010-2011
Recruited a team of teachers and wrote a proposal to become a part of the Getty Museum’s Arts and Language Arts year long program. During this time the team attended a weeklong institute in the summer, wrote integrated lessons, received coaching and lesson observations, and presented their student work at a culminating event in the spring.
Bringing STEM to Life Grant 2017
Wrote and received a grant from Azusa University in order to support science education in the classroom. These funds were used to purchase supplies for students to conduct lab experiments as well as experience in the field on a trip to the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve.
Education Consortium of Central Los Angeles (ECCLA) Teacher of the Year 2013
ECCLA is an organization dedicated to improving the quality of education in Central and South-Central Los Angeles, this award is an honor for teachers who go above and beyond the call of duty and who work in the community.
Los Angeles Charter School Science Partnership 2012 – 2015
A three-year fellowship that required teachers to attend college level science courses and design inquiry-based science lessons. During the course of this fellowship participants traveled annually to USC’s Wrigley institute for environmental studies on Catalina Island to conduct research, were trained in Models Based inquiry techniques, and were trained to be lesson study facilitators.
PROJECTS
Not in the Stars but in Ourselves 2018 – Present
Project Director
The mission of this project is to unify the community at Foshay Learning Center, a K-12 span school, through traditions around classic works of literature that ignite students’ passions, build resilience, cultivate talents, and help them discover who they truly are. Educators, parents and community members partner to support students in producing a Shakespeare play and coordinating a schoolwide Shakespeare Festival. We developed a space for authentic community collaboration around high level literary topics that break down barriers and create new possibilities for first-generation, college-going students.
During the course of this project I:
- Proposed and launched the scope and sequence of the student experiences and events
- Facilitate and train school English teachers in designing units with Shakespeare that include interpretive agency and critical pedagogy.
- Recruited resources and experts from the Los Angeles Shakespeare Center
- Coordinate guest lecturers from UCLA’s English department and USC’s Classics department to present to students
- Oversee students as they collaborate with each other and community members to execute their various responsibilities (e.g. marketing, outreach, event organization, ticket sales, hospitality, student ambassador presentations, art exhibit, etc.)
- Manage multiple fundraisers and partner with the USC Neighborhood Academic Initiative to fund project expenses and activities
- Produce and coordinate an annual theatrical production, festival and competition
@in_ourselves
The Art of Healing Nature 2019 – Present
Yearlong ecology project, focused on the Los Angeles community and nature. Inspired by the book Wild LA: Explore the Amazing Nature in and Around Los Angeles by the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, as well as the book The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Healthier, Happier, and More Creative by Florence Williams, this project attempts to use interdisciplinary experiences in nature with the holistic aim of increasing students’ sense of connection to each other and nature while also fostering their identities as global and local community members.
- Collaborate with the Natural History Museum Education to design lessons and experiences that incorporate museum resources
- Train students and parents to participate in community science programs with the use of iNaturalist
- Collaborate with the USC Sea Grant Education Program in order to build a curriculum that incorporates local ecology issues, data, and network with conservation organizations
- Organize guest lecturers from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, USC professors, and the USC Sea Grant
- Plan and organize class trips to local ecological reserves: Ballona Wetlands, Los Angeles River and Cabrillo Beach
- Consult art education experts on how to teach art skills and content in relation to science lessons
- Develop curriculum of using mapping as a way to creatively represent spaces and their significance (e.g. concept maps, memory maps, nature maps)
- Direct a final community event for students to display, present and celebrate their work from throughout the year.
@art_of_healing_nature
TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH
Organized and recruited teacher action research groups I was able to meet once a week over a period of a year for each project. Selected accomplishments include:
- Recruited teacher researchers and trained on the inquiry process
- Curated research and readings around the selected area of interest
- Facilitated group discussions
- Directed the group through multiple inquiry cycles based on observations, research data, videos of instruction, and student artifacts.
- Used the group’s findings in order to create lessons for the team and resources presented to the larger education community.
Facilitating Student Centered Discourse 2014-2015
Research Question: How can teachers better facilitate close reading conversations about difficult texts so that they are more student centered?
- Consulted MOCA art educators to develop an approach to interpreting text that was similar to a Visual Thinking Strategies protocol
- Identified the key questions and how questions can/should be used in facilitation of student discourse
- Refined teacher discussion facilitation techniques
- Presented December 2014 “Text Talks: Facilitating Student Centered Close Reading Discussions”
At First Inaugural Teachers Talking with Teacher Symposium
Mastering Models Based Instruction 2013-2014
Research Question: How can we help students create their own authentic models to represent their understanding in science
- Created a lesson sequence that broke up the model making process into discrete phases
- Produced a series of PowerPoints to support this lesson sequence
- Created a design process map
- Presented findings and student work at CSTA “Mastering Models”
SELECTED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & CONFERENCES
- Contemporary Art Start, Museum of Contemporary Art Start 2007 – Present
- Harvard Project Zero Classroom July, 2019
- UC Santa Cruz Dickens Universe Conference July, 2018, 2019
- Institute for Standards, Curricula and Assessments 2018
- Shakespeare Institute 2012, 2015, 2017
- National Science Teachers Association Conference March 2017
- International Baccalaureate Conference, Long Beach October, 2015
- LAUSD Secondary Science Leaders: Train the Trainer 2015 – 2016
- LA Philharmonic School in Residence Program 2010 – 2015
- National Science Teachers Association Conference June, 2014
- Inner City Arts Creativity in the Classroom 2009, 2011
- Getty Arts and Language Arts Program 2010-2011
- Connecting Art &the Common Core Hammer Museum Institute July, 2014 2015
- California Science Teachers Association Conference October 2007
- 2-Way CABE 2005, 2006, 2007
- English Language Development Practicum, LAUSD June 2006
- UCLA Science Project August 2005, 2006,
2011
- UCLA LUCI Math June ,2005
- Project GLAD (Guide Language Acquisition and Design) 2004-2005
- UCLA LUCI Math Workshop June, 2004
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
National Art Education Association
National Science Teachers Association
Daedalus Teacher Collective