When I was six years old, I informed my dad, a career Army officer, that I wanted to fly airplanes in the military. With his encouragement, I never wavered from my goal. Upon graduation from high school, I entered the United States Air Force Academy, having received a Presidential appointment. Four years later, I realized my dream by graduating with a Bachelor of Science in political science, a commission in the Air Force, and a pilot training slot.

As an Air Force pilot, I flew C-141 Starlifters on myriad missions. I airlifted supplies and mail to bases in Europe and embassies in Africa, flew emergency medical evacuations in the Americas and Europe, and supported Department of State missions to Europe, Africa, and Southwest Asia. During the Soviet Union-Afghanistan War, I flew Afghani refugees from Pakistan to Europe for medical treatment and political asylum. Afterward, I was selected to fly missions into Moscow in support of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty between the United States and Soviet Union. Additionally, I supported Operations Desert Shield/Storm in Southwest Asia, as well as Operations Provide Relief and Restore Hope into Somalia.

After nine years in the Air Force, I chose to make my family my top priority by leaving active duty to pursue a new career goal — becoming a teacher. I graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a master's degree in early childhood education. I taught three years in Virginia before my husband and I moved to Georgia. In order to better differentiate my instruction and improve my teaching practices, I earned my gifted instructor certification, National Board Certification, and my specialist degree in middle grades math and science from Brenau University.

With my extensive background in math and science and my desire to bring math to the forefront in elementary school, I initiated various math and science programs and activities for students and their parents. In an effort to ensure that the teachers knew how to teach math to fourth- and fifth-graders, I helped create a summer math institute to teach best instructional methods to summer school teachers. During the school year, I offered after-school classes to teachers who volunteered to learn in-depth the algebraic concepts they were teaching their students. To reach new teachers with proven math instruction, I volunteered to run a mentor program and oversee more than 30 mentors and protégés.

As a former military member and someone deeply passionate about living our Constitution, I annually involved my students in different community service projects for the school, local veterans, and families in need. I am thrilled and honored to be a Washington Fellow because I can now become a part of the inner workings of the U.S. Department of Education, serving as a bridge between policy at the federal level and practice at the classroom level.

In my spare time I write. Thus far, I have had published two books about our country's Civil and Revolutionary War sites and numerous children's board books for Seaworld and the San Diego Zoo. As an Air Force Reserve Historian, I have written histories such as the Air Force's participation in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort, a pamphlet about the Tuskegee Airmen, and articles for Citizen Airmen magazine. To relax, I enjoy spending time outdoors with my husband, Al, or cross-stitching and watching old movies with one of our three cats on my lap.