~About Me ~

I was born and raised in Wayzata Minnesota. During my time at Wayzata High School, I was very active in many activities; I was part of the varsity swim team and rugby team. I was also involved in student government, and a service program called Y.E.S (Youth Extending Service); I knew that I wanted to go to a school that could offer many different opportunities for me to get involved in.

I was very fortunate to find Penn State. I fell in love with the campus the moment I stepped onto it. Not only does Penn State have one of the top art education programs in the country, but also had many opportunities and organizations for me to get involved. Not to mention a sense of school spirit that can match any university in the nation.

During my years at Penn State, I was a part of the rugby team, water polo team, (PAEA) Pennsylvania Art Education Association student chapter, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and also helped to found a service sorority named Kappa Gamma Phi. I have been a member of the PAEA student chapter and the National Art Education Association since 2002. In the 2002–2003 school year I held the position of treasurer, and in the 2003-2004 school year I was vice-president. In these roles I have helped to plan and organize many of our activities, including attending the National Art Education Association conference in Minneapolis in the spring of 2003 and the conference in Denver in 2004. In the fall of 2003 I presented at the PAEA state conference with one of my professors Dr. Karen Keifer-Boyd and the President of our organization. The following year I presented with a classmate of mine on a curriculum we developed for our advanced practicum. Our organization has also helped out at some of the local elementary schools art and science nights, and has also helped liven up the child development lab on campus by painting various things from a shed to benches. Throughout my involvement in PAEA and NAEA and now as a member of Minnesota Art Educators (MAE), I have had many great experiences, and many opportunities for professional development.

One of my greatest achievements in my time here at Penn State I would have to say is being a founding sister of Kappa Gamma Phi. I helped to start this organization in April of 2001. Kappa Gamma Phi is a service sorority whose main objective is to promote service, scholarship and sisterhood to its members. We are very focused on helping in the local community; for example this Halloween we trick or treated for canned food goods for the local food shelf raising over 400 pounds of food for the local food bank. We are also very dedicated to scholarship; we have study hours every week, and our sorority as a whole must maintain a 3.0 cumulative G.P.A. We also participate in University events such as Homecoming, and the 48-hour dance marathon in which we have raised over $25,000 for kids with cancer in just three years. I have been very active in Kappa Gamma Phi, in the 2001-2002 school year I was new member educator, in the 2002-2003 school year I was treasurer, and in the 2003-2004 I was President. Over the years I was there our sorority has grown a lot and continues to grow every year, it is amazing to think that I was a part of starting it, and maintaining it for three years.

Once I graduated in 2004 I started substituting in the Wayzata School District. I am currently a level three substitute, with over 95% of my time spent in art rooms. I have also had two long term substitute stints with the district. One was in the spring of 2005 where I took over the last term of the school year for the teacher that was out on maternity leave. The second was for three weeks in the computer art class at the high school.

I am currently living in Maple Grove and looking for a full time job. When I'm not working, I enjoy painting, photography, working out, biking, swimming, skiing, and watching movies.