Go Back to Dyads
Hi:  I am one of the teaching assistants for this course, ETAP426/526. I am a full time student in the ETAP department specializing in Curriculum Design & Evaluation. My road to this clearing in my career was winding and, at times, tortuous. I worked as a consulting family teacher in site development in the Mid-west (ChiTown, St. Louis, & Pittsburgh areas) for Boys Town. We taught a social skills curriculum to boys & girls which was based upon a behavioral modification treatment w/strong interpersonal relationship components. We sought to reintegrate these youth into their natural environments by teaching successful middle class values (?)...

      After doing that for several years, I moved to NYS where I obtained my permanent teaching certification & license in Math (7 - 12) while at SUNYNew Paltz. I paid for much of that experience by managing a few bands in the Woodstock area and working the Kosher Deli as a short order cook. I then taught math in several school districts in the Hudson Valley until becoming disillusioned by attempts to teach "outside the lines" using strong constructivist pedagogy.

     I found a small remedial reading program in a Sch'dy settlement house one day, fell in love with its mission and adopted it. Over the past several years (or more), I developed a WAN Community Technology Center as I expanded the curriculum from a one-site, single stage remedial reading program into a multiple site, cross-generational, family-based curriculum centered around information technology (informatics). I specialized in an action research agenda whereby I worked with stakeholders and agencies developing alternative curricula by teaching them to write grants and develop a sustainable strategic business plan. I worked in economic development, educational, and small business venues with these stakeholder collaborative groups. Basically, I motivated their entrepreneurial senses within the competitive funding arena in which many of them were failing.

     Presently, I am investigating action research agendas and participate on the Virtual High School (VHS) Standards Board and Community Technology Center Network (CTCNet), both national, federally funded projects seeking to disseminate the type of work we are learning to do in this course. I refer you to my WEBsite (it's been two years since I updated it; an update will be published soon...) for further refs. Nice to have met some of you already in your work, this Domino WorkSpace.

        I listen to classical music (mostly baroque) while I read, write and do quantitative data analysis (as I must, at times). I love to canoe-camp, hike, read philosophy & history, play strategic war games (Civil War Generals II, Soldiers at War, Commanche, etc.) and listening to Rhythm & Blues, Blues and R&R while standing or dancing (my mother says I was born dancing).  I prefer to spend time with groups of friends enjoying stimulating discussions and reflective moments the best, though...   ;-} rap.
                                                                Go Back to Dyads