For over two decades I’ve been providing English Language Services and EdTech training to a wide variety of students from across the world, and implementing technology into the language learning process.
EDUCATION & CLASSROOM TEACHING
I graduated from San Diego State University in early 2005, double majoring in Japanese and Pacific Asian Studies. SDSU is where I began to pick up my love for culture and language, and where I was encouraged to consider a career in teaching.
I started my teaching career in Japanese universities as well as teaching to businesspeople from major international companies (Nestle, Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, etc).
Having realized that I could offer more to my students with a better education, I decided to pursue my Master’s Degree in TESOL (TeachingEnglish as a Second or Other Language) at the University of Southern California.
USC’s Rossier School of Education was one of the first schools to experiment with a true online blended learning model – allowing students to take courses 100% online, but with required synchronous and asynchronous meeting times. Although USC was within driving distance, I decided to pursue the online model as it was clear to see that this was the first step in the future of education – a decision that ultimately left me fully prepared for the worldwide shift to online teaching during the COVID pandemic. At the time, I wanted to see what the online learning experience was like from a student’s perspective. This was an eye-opening experience and it showed me many of the strengths and pitfalls of technology in education, lessons that I continue to draw from to this day.
Immediately upon receiving my Master’s Degree in 2012, I was hired to work as the Academic Manager at Kaplan International Centers. This position allowed me to understand the administrative side of running a school and to see the ins and outs of students’ learning process beyond the four walls of the classroom. In the two years I worked as Academic Manager, our small team was able to bring up our internal rankings to the highest rated campus worldwide and we were proud to set a precedent that our students were not only learning English, but were truly college-bound.
In 2014 I decided that I wanted to return to the classroom, so I began work as an Adjunct Professor for Irvine Valley College, Saddleback College, and Orange Coast College. This work reinvigorated my passion for the community college system and allowed me to pursue my own passions in teaching and technology integration.
In 2015 a colleague encouraged me to apply for a full-time lecturer position back at the University of Southern California at the International Academy where I was quickly hired. Beyond teaching advanced academic writing for students on track to join any number of USC’s Master’s programs, I was soon elected as the chair of the Technology and Professional Development Committee where we worked to create program-wide solutions to a number of issues facing the quickly expanding program.
In the summer of 2016 I was offered the opportunity to join Irvine Valley College as a full-time faculty member where I continue to teach classes and to explore the development of ESL and technology integration in higher education.
TEACHER TRAINING AND CONSULTING
I was an early explorer in the world of EdTech and language learning. While I found that the TESOL field had small pockets of technology enthusiasts, it wasn’t until I started reaching out beyond our field that I started finding true inspiration. Joining organizations and attending conferences like CUE and ISTE showed me that I wasn’t alone in the world of bold explorers.
Being one of the few people who brought technology into the world of language learning, and language learning into the world of technology, I soon found myself filling a niche that teachers, schools, and other institutions were clamoring for. As my presentations grew in popularity and I shared more online, more and more organizations reached out to me about organizing workshops, running trainings, and consulting companies.
As a sought-after speaker and trainer on top of my full-time teaching load, my availability is limited, but I’m enthusiastic about helping teachers who are ready to make the shift into modern, engaging pedagogy. Please feel free to reach out if this describes you or your team and you’d like to work with me.