K-12 Educator
I was a K-12 teacher who never aspired to be an administrator, although I spent much of my career working directly with Principals and central office administrators as a Swiss Army knife resource teacher.
In 2014, I completed a successful thirty-five-year career in special and general education in
San Diego Unified School District. Here’s a brief history.
Starting in 1980, I was a special education teacher for students with severe multiple disabilities. I created many electrical control devices for these student’s communication and leisure. I also created professional development for teachers and parents working and living with these students. In 1983, I started a non-profit business called, Designs for Success that fabricated individualized adaptations for students with disabilities. I was also the District’s first Assistive Technology Resource Teacher, which later grew into its own Assistive Technology Department under Special Education Services.
In general education, I taught Kindergarten for three years (the hardest job in my life), and later became a K-6 Computer Lab Teacher for several years.
I served many years as a central office K-12 Magnet Schools and Educational Technology Resource Teacher for the District. During these years, I worked with many talented colleagues and teamed to provide inquiry-based professional development that integrated technology in learning activities. I also evaluated and field tested many hardware products and furniture that became District standards in classrooms, libraries and labs, including: Macs, Windows and Linux laptop computers and cart systems, student standing desks, teacher wireless microphone/audio systems, video projectors, document cameras, interactive whiteboards and eliminating the traditional teacher desk for a multimedia presentation station. In Ed Tech, I created a website called the Product Price List with images and descriptions that was very popular for many years with District teachers and staff to view all the district technology and AV furniture standards.
- As an Ed Tech Resource Teacher, I was tasked to work with the District's Facilities Planning staff to assist with new school construction with the technology integration of classroom audio systems, video presentation systems and laptop computers.
- In 2009, Dan Wolfson (Educational Technology Program Manager) and I co-created the i21 Learning Initiative which over five years provided professional development for the District-wide deployment of interactive whiteboards, sound system, presentation station and 1:1 laptops for every classroom and teacher in the District. Dan and I wrote the first strategic planning drafts for the entire deployment.
- From 2010-2014, I finished my teaching career at Mission Bay High School in San Diego as both their International Baccalaureate (IB) Coordinator and Technology Coordinator. Working with school staff and the community, I helped grow and promote the IB program to a level of sustainability as it continues to prosper today. I also created sit/stand options for students in classrooms and transformed the library into a learning commons.
- As a learning environment consultant and designer, I advocated for the 20th to 21st century transformation of a school's three most common learning spaces from: classrooms to learning studios; libraries to learning commons; and labs to makerspaces.
- I ran a for-profit educational consulting and design service having the opportunity to partner with schools and companies to craft unique learning spaces in many K-12 classrooms, libraries, and labs.
- In 2018, I self-published my free online book, Learning Environment Design (LED): The K-12 Integration of Learning Design, Physical Space Design, and Digital Space Design. My book is always live online as I update a little here and a little there with my latest thinking. I have always advocated for mobile and modular (mobimod) learning spaces for individualized and collaborative work within the classroom, and the transformation to a learning studio. In 2023, I began the process of starting a second edition of sorts exploring personalized and collaborative learning spaces living in a covid world.
- In March 2022, I started a new adventure working for D&D Integrated Solutions as their Learning Environment Designer (LED). I hit the ground running with projects in both Northern and Southern California.
- I'm very excited to design with the D&D team with their extensive partnerships with furniture and technology manufacturers working in a variety of learning space projects with K-12 schools.
- During 2022 and into 2023, I assisted in the design and scope of rebranding the company to D&D Learning Spaces. I designed D&D's new website responsible for creating content as well as being the featured writer for the D&D Learning Spaces Blog. Check out my posts!
In 2015, I started Monday Monday Music™ with the tag line, A Weekly Blog About Rock 'n' Roll And Americana Genres Of Music.
- I started the blog to improve my writing skills with a weekly Monday morning deadline. The inspiration for the title comes from the 1966 hit by the Mamas and the Papas, Monday, Monday. In 1964, I was nine years old and absorbed rock 'n' roll into my being like so many kids older and younger than me.
- The blog is designed with two parts: one, I write something about a subject, and then, I usually create a YouTube playlist relating to the subject.
- I have a core group of friends and family that give me a lot of support, but I'm starting to grow my audience, so check my music blog out. I've got your music playlist for the week covered.
In 1973, I graduated from high school and started running around town and at the local community college just down the street from my house in Santa Maria, California.
- I was never a speedster and in the 1980's all these triathlon athletes started forming professional teams with sponsors. So I just started calling myself 'Team Tortoise' because I was always a jogger, and now I'm a slow jogger, or simply, a 'slogger.'
- Around 2008 or thereabouts, I started the web site Team Tortoise to reflect my running style and got my two sisters involved to the point where I designed some graphics and we made t-shirts for several half-marathons that we ran in together.
- I put the website together for us slower folks on the go and anyone can download the Team Tortoise, or Team Turtle logos for their 'own team.' In recent years, I have combined my passions for running and music and merged Team Tortoise running articles into my Monday Monday Music blog.
