Background



I grew up in Arizona in a rowdy family of six -- 3 older brothers. My Dad taught aero tech classes at Arizona State University and flew refueling jets for the Air National Guard. Mom taught junior high home economics. Three older brothers kept busy with sports, motorcycles, and neighborhood kids. I have fond memories of desert thunderstorms and still love the smell of the Creosote Bush.

At Arizona State University, I studied chemical engineering a few years before I realized I wanted to teach. I changed majors and colleges and eventually got a degree in chemistry with a minor in computer science from the University of Arizona in Tucson.

In 1987, I took a teaching job (computer applications) at Victor Valley High School in Victorville, California. A forest service trail maintenence summer job introduced me to new friends and led me to a job in San Diego. I taught physics at Carlsbad High School for two years, entered the graduate program in Educational Technology at SDSU, and eventually moved back North to Loma Linda, where I helped design and direct a learning center at Loma Linda University's School of Medicine.

J & K  &  Banyan treeIn Spring of 1995, I became a member of the Pacific Bell Education First Design Team at San Diego State University. Though we did some exciting work, I missed teaching, so began teaching part-time and then full-time at Cuyamaca College, a small community college about 30 minutes east of downtown San Diego. 

My daughter and husband keep me smiling, and I'm grateful for our hearty home.