I was born and raised here in Harlan County to a family full of teachers-- parents, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandparents-- I guess you could say teaching is in my blood. I earned my Bachelor's degree at a small private institution called Alice Lloyd College where I worked a full-time job (night shift) at a fast-food restaurant while taking classes. After graduation, I filled an interim teaching position in an English class, spent a few months working in a daycare, and, as coal mines around the region closed and jobs became more and more difficult to find, I eventually moved West to teach. I spent three years teaching English-Language Arts to grades 8-12 in the middle of the desert in Central Nevada. While there, I met my (now) husband-- also a teacher-- Ben. In 2013, he was offered a job teaching in Memphis, so he and I made the move across the country, stopping in Las Vegas to get married on the way. I taught three years in Memphis and decided to stay home when I had my first child, Charlotte Grace, in 2016. We had our second daughter, Emma Claire, in 2018. Last January, my husband was called to pastor a small church on 119 (Calloway Baptist) and took a job with Pineville Independent Schools, although he now teaches at Middlesboro Independent Schools. Last year, I was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer and had to miss most of the school year. I am now finished with active treatment and so excited to be back in the classroom! I live in Pineville with my husband, daughters, two cats, and a frog. I enjoy traveling every chance I get, reading, listening to music, and spending time with my family.