 HOMETOWN: Downers Grove, IL
UNI DEGREE: Bachelor of Music in Education, December 2008 ADDITIONAL DEGREE: nope, one is good for me! EMAIL: CURRENT RESIDENCE: Mapleton, IA OCCUPATION: 9-12 Band director and K-6 General Music teacher between 2 districts--Maple Valley-Anthon Oto and Charter Oak Ute GREATEST LIFE EXPERIENCE: Getting a job, a bed, a job, and an appartment! STRANGEST LIFE EXPERIENCE: Having Dr. G for a trumpet teacher! [HA!] This one took me a while since I don't feel like I've lived long enough to have found my strangest life experience. But, with a little help from my partner in crime (Ms. Jacobson), I have determined that my strangest life experiences (all soon to be 24 years) are those with windshield wipers. I seem to put a curse on my wipers every winter - they get a mind of their own and tease me. They start when I tell them to, but then decide to keep going until they feel that my windshield meets their cleanliess expectations - and then stop wherever they feel like. So, I play this game with them. I turn them on and off until they finally decide to stop in the normal down position. This is the second vehicle that I've owned that has done this. Is it just me? [Yes, Ali!!] GREATEST PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: hmmm...again--this is a little intimidating, seeing that I am only 24 years old! BUT, I'd have to say that after doing a million applications (maybe more like 80 or so, but a million sounds better!), going to 10 interviews, and having the school year begin without me having a job, I FINALLY got a job - in a district that has been the best possible place for me to grow and learn (A TON) as a first year teacher. The district is extremely supportive of everything I do, and it has provided very strong mentors as well as a close community of colleagues. I couldn't have asked for a better place to start! STRANGEST PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Being told that a student skipped my class to take a nap in her locker! It was half true, since she DID skip a class to take a nap in her locker. However it wasn't during MY class. Talk about an awkward conversation, though! UNI TRUMPET STUDIO MEMORIES: hmm...Becoming an excellent sprinter, and learning how to get around the ticket-happy UNI cops so I could park somewhere close to Russell... so I wouldn't be late for my trumpet lessons (which I never was!). BUT, I think Dr. G must have enjoyed seeing me wake up early, because I always seemed to get the earliest possible lesson he had - most years at 8:00 a.m.!! (I think Junior year may have been 9:00 a.m.). It must have just been that teacher instinct he had... thinking that one day I would realize that I should just wake up and leave on time so I could arrive for my lessons on time.... and avoid the stress of worrying about what excuses I should come up with... and if Dr. G would buy it (don't think he ever did!)! I don't know that I ever really improved on leaving on time, but maybe I got to know more of the tricks so that I could avoid walking in too late! I guess this submission is a good reflection of all I learned with those morning lessons--only about a year late!...oops! I will also not forget the countless hours spent with my other half, Katy J! While we did not always help motivate each other on the things we were supposed to, (like being on time, practicing trumpet and piano, and studying for hours upon end), we certainly had fun, and we grew inseparable! The list of memories with Katy are endless (from college)... and are still growing! Being serious for a minute, though - one of my biggest overall memories from the Trumpet Studio is watching how much I grew as a musician (along with everyone else). My class was a big group, and it was a really great eye opener to see how, with a lot of work and consistant practice, people made a LOT of changes in their playing (including myself)! During my 2nd Freshman year, I wasn't convinced that I was ever going to be what I felt was a good trumpet player. But, somewhere in between then and the end of my junior year, things started coming together - and quickly! Not that I ever became a symphony orchestra player, but I grew beyond where I thought I could ever be. I was motivated to do the work because I was surrounded by people who supported and encouraged my growth. THAT was a life changing experience! ANYTHING ELSE?: I just got a puppy this December - he's an all-black Aussidoodle (Austrailian Shepherd/Poodle mix) named Bailey! He keeps things very busy and always exciting, but is totally worth it! | 
