Work History
Current Work History
2024-present  Prairie View Hobbbies, LLC
Owner/Operator
Providing Chess Event services
Providing Tournament Director services
2024-present  Wildman Hobbbies
Fiberglass Workshop Foreman
Machine operator - Producing Filament-Wound fiberglass parts for rocketry; i.e. airframe and coupler tubes, nosecones, transitions, and more
Training Specialist - In charge of training new hires in the Fiberglass workshop
Manager - Manage the production and work flow for all fiberglass production
Education Work History
Certification:
Illinois Professional Educator License #2026655, IEIN #684564
Approved Program/Endorsements: English Language Arts, Reading Specialist, Secondary Education
Education:
Aurora University, Master of the Arts in Reading Instruction, December 2011
Bradley University, Bachelor of the Arts in English-Teaching, May 2005
Joliet Catholic Academy, High School Diploma, with Honors, May 2000
2012-2024 Guilford High School, Rockford
Classes Taught:
English 12 - AP Literature & Composition (2016-2024)
Students develop critical language, analysis, and interpretive skills in extremely complex text
Students also develop the skills to communicate their analysis clearly and thoroughly
English 12 - Senior English (2015-2024)
Helped students develop...
... reading strategies and methods to successfully encounter college level text
... college-level writing skills for essays, personal statements, and other assorted writing tasks
... speaking and presentation skills using multimedia technology
... collaboration skills through self-guided projects and ongoing peer assessment
English 11 - American Literature (2017-2019)
Helped students develop...
... reading strategies and methods to successfully encounter difficult text
... analytical writing skills for essays, persuasion, and other assorted writing tasks
... speaking and presentation skills using multimedia technology
... collaboration skills through self-guided projects and ongoing peer assessment
English 12 - Capstone (2016/17, + curriculum development)
Students developed independent learning projects connected with the community through which they learned how to interact professionally, research information, compile reports, and deliver professional presentations on their efforts
ACT Prep (2015/16, + extra tutoring)
Helped students increase ACT Reading and English scores by an average of 6+ points in a semester
Literacy - Janet Allen's Plugged In to Non-Fiction (2012-2016)
Helped students develop reading strategies to comprehend complex text.
Increased student Lexile scores by an average of 100-200 points in a single year
Literacy - Read 180, System 44 (2012-2014)
Helped students learn phonics through basic comprehension skills
Many students grew 2-3 years of reading skill in one year
One student grew from illiteracy to 5th grade reading in a single year
Extra-Curricular Activities
Chess Team Coach (2012-2024)
Developed a chess team structure that fosters independent skill growth and student-led leadership
Created a strong team environment that encourages collaboration while maintaining individual motivation and competition
See my chess background here
Scholastic Bowl Co-Coach (2012-2014)
Committees:
Building Association Representative (2012-2024)
Head Building Association Representative 2019-2021
Rockford Education Association Secretary 2022-2024
Building Committee (2012-2019)
Worked with the teacher representatives and administrative representatives to resolve building-level issues through clear communication and collaboration
Grading Committee (2019)
Worked with a team of teachers to develop common practices and expectations for grading and using the online gradebook in order to help communicate about grades with students, parents, and support staff
Capstone Curriculum Committee (2015-2017)
Worked with a team of teachers to develop a curriculum open enough to include a wide range of student-selected Capstone projects while maintaining the assessment needs and skill development required of high school curriculum
Through a constant reassessment process, we updated and changed the curriculum as needed to meet the needs of students, community support team, and teachers
2012-2016 DeKalb High School
Class Taught - Summer School Speech
20 4-hour days
Class size 25-32
2007-2012 Marengo Community High School, Marengo
Class Taught:
Summer School Reading Workshop
English 10
English 10 Honors
English 12 - Senior Literature
English 12 - College Writing
Advanced Speech
Extra-Curricular Activities
Class of 2011 Class Sponsor (4 years)
Chess Club Sponsor (2007-08)
Chess Team Coach (2008-12)
Committees
English 12 Curriculum Team
Career Committee
2006-2007 Woodruff High School, Peoria
Classes Taught
English 9 - Speech
English 10
Extra-Curricular Activities
Chess Club co-sponsor
2005-2006 Washington Gifted School, Peoria
Classes Taught
6th Grade Reading
7th Grade Speech
8th Grade Debate
7th Grade English
Extra-Curricular Activities
Boys Softball Coach (Fall)
Boys Basketball Coach (Winter)
Chess Club Sponsor (Spring)
Other Work
2007-2009 Huntington Learning Center, Rockford
Tutored K-12 students in mathematics and reading
ACT tutoring of all 5 ACT tests
2005-2007 Blockbuster Video, Peoria & Rockford
Customer Service in film recommendation and accommodation
Sales of video selections, extra purchases, and various customer programs
Placement, stocking, and warehousing of videos and other merchandise
2001-2005 Domino's Pizza, Peoria
Customer Service Representative, take orders from customers in person and via phone, respond to customer comments
Pizza Cook, make orders of all items
2000-2005 Meijer, Bolingbrook
Front-End Supervisor, charged with managing cashiers, baggers, and customer service desk representatives throughout a shift
Customer Service Representative, charged with operating the service desk and accommodating customer returns and exchanges
Cashier
1999-2004 Bolingbrook Park District
Day Camp Counselor, 3 summers
Remington Lakes Sports Complex Field Supervisor
1998-1999 Target, Bolingbrook
Customer Service Representative
Electronics Department Lead
1997-1998 Jewel-Osco, Bolingbrook
Front-End Service Representative, Bagger
Produce Department.