What inspired you to get into the field of education?:
My passion for education originates from my experience as a wilderness instructor. I was enamored by the way wilderness education provided a simple yet profound means to positively influence lives, shift perspectives, and encourage personal growth through the power of "challenge by choice," pushing individuals to attain greater heights.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?:
The most gratifying aspect of my job is witnessing the transformation in people. As building leaders, we invest considerable time in strategizing and effectively communicating our vision for the future. It is when that vision materializes into reality that I truly feel my impact.
General background information (years in education, degree(s), Universities/Colleges attended):
My journey in public education started as a wilderness educator at Pioneer School for Expeditionary Learning, which later evolved into Polaris in 2006/2007. This experience was transformative as it introduced me to innovative teaching and learning methods.
Following my marriage in 2007, my wife and I relocated to Berlin, Germany, to teach internationally for a year, seeking opportunities to work and travel internationally more easily.
Upon returning to Colorado from Germany, I quickly completed my education degree, making a stop back at Polaris to fulfill my student teaching requirements. After graduation, I began my career as a middle school social studies teacher at Chappelow K-8 Arts and Literacy Magnet School in the Greeley School District.
From 2012 to 2014, we moved back to Berlin, Germany, with our growing family, which then included a 2-year-old daughter and an 8-month-old son. During this period, I served as an educational technology teacher at the John F. Kennedy School in southern Berlin.
Upon our return from our second teaching stint in Germany, I was fortunate enough to secure a position as an educational technology teacher at Olander School for Project-Based Learning in the Poudre School District. It was during this time at Olander that I began to understand the responsibilities of being a teacher leader and embarked on my journey towards obtaining an educational leadership degree.
In 2019, I embraced the opportunity to become an assistant principal at Tozer Primary School, a K-2 School in the Windsor/Severance school district. This role provided valuable insights into being a teacher and building leader, teaching me how to effectively lead through challenges and successes.
As you may have noticed, my educational career has spanned several schools and continents, but I am elated to be a part of the dynamic and exciting community that is Polaris School for Expeditionary Learning. I hope to call it my home for many years to come!
2006- Associates in Adventure Sports Education
2009- Bachelors of Arts- History
2009- Teaching License
2018- Master in Educational Leadership
Interests/Hobbies:
I love anything outdoors. In my free time I can be found white water kayaking, multi-day rafting with my family, mountain biking with my friends, skiing, camping, timber sledding (google it, it’s really fun), and in general, just enjoying everything Colorado has to offer.
Thought Provoking Quote:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
― Theodore Roosevelt