I am a California expat who recently relocated to Ottawa in March 2025 (please don't hold that against me :)) with my husband and two children. Being of biracial (Chinese-European background) descent, growing up in a multiethnic community, raising my children in a bilingual French/English household, living on a remote French territory, and travelling around the globe has shaped my sensitivity and understanding of my fellow man. I have a innate passion for helping others move forward and a natural curiosity in others. I have been told that I am easygoing, warm, friendly, disarming and have a way about my teaching which is structured, motivating, and fun.
For the past few years, I have worked ardently on my French language acquisition to resume my career as an educator in a bilingual French-English speaking environment. During this time, I have kept abreast of the field of education and psychology through online trainings and collaboration with former colleagues. I also often serve as a consultant for students with disabilities and social-emotional needs within the general education French school setting and have had the chance to put my knowledge as a psychologist into play when I teach English as a Second Language. I also have gained extensive insight with regards to understanding the challenges of needs of second language learners.
Having worked at various levels within the field of general education and special education as a School Psychologist, District Program Specialist, Resource Teacher, Special Day Class teacher, Collaborative teacher, support provider, English as a Second Language Teacher, and paraprofessional in both the public school and alternative school settings, I understand how to support my students reach their fullest potential. Throughout this time, I have developed a philosophy of education whereby I hope to help students raise expectations of themselves to become their best selves, fully become thriving adults to the greatest extent possible, and gain a sense of satisfaction regarding their place and contributions to society.
My roles at varying educational levels have afforded me the ability to assess and work with children throughout a spectrum of developmental stages and backgrounds. I have strong experience assessing students with exceptional needs and I use these plans as tools to accommodate specific learning needs and differentiate instruction.
I have a breadth of experience in counseling; I have provided behavior-management, at-risk, Designated and Instructional Services counseling as well as social-skills training to at-risk students and students with autism, specific learning disabilities, other health impairments, and emotional disturbances in preschool through 12th grade. Moreover, I have a background in working with children with behavioral difficulties, as I am trained as a Behavioral Intervention Case Manager and am competent at writing Functional Behavior Analyses.
In addition to my experience as an educator, I understand the importance of cultural sensitivity. I am biracial and grew up in a home with a Chinese father and American mother. I am well-traveled, reside in a bilingual household where my husband speaks to my children solely in French, and have spent a considerable amount of time in an international community (France, Spain, Los Angeles, New Caledonia). I have lived five years in New Caledonia, a French territory with a significant population of indigenous peoples. I have also worked for over 25 years in Los Angeles, where the parents of many of my students were solely Spanish speakers and was accustomed to communicating with parents in their native language. I possess native English proficiency, working Spanish proficiency and High-Intermediate/Advanced French proficiency.
I have been working within the field of education for over 25 years. I have Masters degrees in teaching and school psychology and have worked within both domains for many years as a school psychologist, English as a Second Language teacher, and as a special education teacher. I have the unique ability to determine my student's learning style, and their learning strengths and weaknesses in order to design and apply a teaching program and strategies that support their acquisition, retention, and generalization of what is taught. I am able to relate to students of all ages as I have taught in a variety of settings - from infants to preschool students in individual, home, and group settings to PhD students and doctors in academic settings. I am easy to relate to, funny, and warm yet structured and goal-oriented. I tend to create warm and empathic relationships with people I work with as my desire is to help individuals succeed and move forward towards their goals.
I have a B.S. in Biology, a Masters Degrees in Education, a teaching credential in Education, a Masters Degree in School Psychology, and a Pupil Services Credential.
Teacher education, Science degree, Psychology, Master degree
