Teacher and Staff Contact List

Why did you choose to become a teacher?
I have a job where I get to read, play, sing, read some more, try experiments, go on field trips and cut out construction paper hearts. I feel very lucky!

Where did you go to college?
I went to UNC in Greeley. Four years ago, I went back for my master’s degree with a group of teachers from Bill Roberts.

What is your favorite noise?
A barista calling out my vanilla chai order!

What are your hobbies outside of school?
Reading, list-making trips to the beach, skiing with my family.

What is your favorite book for children?
I love “It’s Hard to be Five” by Jamie Lee Curtis and poems by Shel Silverstein.  Right now I am collecting all the “Pete the Cat” books.

Who is your hero or heroine?
It sounds cliché, but my hero is my great grandmother, Geneva Dukes. She was a kindergarten teacher in Iowa and I have some of her handwritten poems. My cousin and I interviewed her when we were 10 and I have a video of her talking about teaching.

What is the funniest thing a student has ever said to you?
Kindergarten teachers hear lots of stories and comments. We could write a book!

What is your funniest moment teaching?
Tie between having a mouthful of pop rocks right when a firefighter (who was guest reader) came to my classroom, and taking a group of 1^st graders to a pumpkin patch in Mississippi when most of them had never been out of New Orleans.

What do you love about Bill Roberts?
We are in a big school but we make it feel small by truly knowing each other and the families we teach.

What is your favorite book for children?
 “Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse” and anything by Kevin Henkes.

What do you love about Bill Roberts?
I really enjoy my teammates.  They are smart, funny, and they really love kids.

Why did you choose to become a teacher?
I worked as a school secretary for two years and really enjoyed being around the children.  I took a job as a paraprofessional so I could be around the kids more often, and did that for ten years.  When my youngest child got his driver’s license I decided that my family was independent enough for me to go to college (for the first time!), thus, my career as a teacher began.

Where did you go to college?
Undergraduate – University of Northern Colorado
Masters – University of Phoenix

What is your hometown?
I’m from a tiny farm community in Northern Illinois.  Ladd is so small that it has two stop signs and no stoplights.

What is your favorite noise?
My favorite noise is kids’ laughter and happy talk.  I’ll never forget an evening in Italy when my husband and I sat on a park bench listening to a group of kids playing tag.  It was so fun to hear kids having fun in a language foreign to mine.

What kind of music do you like?
I love, love, love jazz and blues – the liquid voice of Ella Fitzgerald and the gritty sound of Billy Holiday are favorites.

Favorite Book?
“To Kill a Mockingbird”

Who is your hero or heroine?
Hands down, my hero is Frederick Douglass.  His book “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave” made a big impact on me.  He was incredibly eloquent for someone who was illiterate until his teens.

What is the funniest thing a student has ever said to you?
“Your hands look just like my grandma’s!” when I was only 43!

What is your funniest moment teaching?
During the St. Patrick’s Day season we talked about ethnicity and ethnic traditions since St. Patrick was English, and lived in Ireland.  We had fun talking about ethnic traditions, and some of the kids knew right away what ethnicities were represented in their families.  One boy said proudly, “I’m pretty sure we’re Air Force.”

What is your favorite book for children?
“Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon”

Why did you choose to become a teacher?
I love children’s energy and love of life!

Where did you go to college?
University of Nebraska – Go Big Red!

What is your favorite noise?
Ocean waves

Do you have any hidden talents?
I can juggle!

What is your favorite treat?
Dark chocolate covered almonds.

What do you love about Bill Roberts?
I love the students, staff and parents.  Everyone is invested in the betterment of each other, our community and our world!