About

I was born in Fontana, California and grew up in both Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga. My dad, Mike, was a high school teacher and my mom was a computer aided draftsperson before she recently retired. I have one amazing sister, Elena, who has a wonderful husband, Noah. My two nieces, Lucy and Emily are the loves of my life! They inspire me every day to continue to be a better person and to never let hate overcome and discourage me. I have been with my partner, Mark, for 18 years and his support and love have really seen me through so many challenging times. His great sense of humor still makes me laugh until I cry. I am so blessed to have him by my side on this crazy ride called life! We live in our little house in San Bernardino with my love bug and silly cat, Frankie.

My main squeeze and I.

I have been a teacher in the Corona-Norco Unified School District for almost 21 years and in the same school, to boot. I started as an intern and feel so fortunate that I have never left! I am at Lee V. Pollard High School which is our district's alternative ed. school. I started out teaching Language Arts (and E.L.D. for a few years), but for the past 11 years have been in our Academic Learning Program. In that program, I have a caseload of students who I work one-on-one with doing credit checks, planning out their path to success and credit recovery, and working hard to keep them motivated. Through parent contact, meeting with students for pep talks and strategy/organizing assistance, and help from our counselors we really see a change in many of our students. It is so fulfilling to see students realize and meet their full potential! I love my job and love working with my students!

My parents always taught my sister and I to stand up for what is right and for those who may not feel they have a voice. During my youth, I was very shy but did small things like boycott restaurants or shops that I read about who were unethical in a variety of ways. But, as I got older, my voice got louder (both rhetorically and literally!). It has always been in me to speak up and work beside others for the greater good...I just needed to finally find my voice. Now, I want to continue to use that voice to help others in the ABC Committee and beyond!