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ABOUT ME

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I am an educator, former Division I athlete, coach, and the author of Naïve Perceptions—a memoir about how the beliefs we form in childhood quietly shape the way we live, love, and lead.

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For much of my life, I believed love had to be earned.

I grew up in a home shaped by instability, where I learned early to read the room, stay small, and take responsibility for the emotional climate around me. Those patterns followed me into adulthood—into relationships, parenting, coaching, and the way I showed up in the world.

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For a long time, they looked like strength.

Sports became my first outlet. I went on to play Division I softball at Michigan State University and later traveled as a professional athlete. Coaching followed, and over the next two decades—working with both college athletes and youth—I began to notice something I couldn’t ignore:

Adults shape environments more than they realize.

The tone we carry, the reactions we have, the pressure we place—children absorb it all.

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That realization led me into education. Today, I work as a public school educator with a Master’s in Education and a background in Communications, supporting students across general and special education settings. Every day in the classroom reinforces what I first saw in sports:

Children respond to our energy long before they respond to our words.

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Writing Naïve Perceptions was not about telling a story for the sake of it. It was about understanding the patterns I had been living inside—and choosing to change them.

The book blends memoir with insight, offering a lens for adults who want to better understand themselves so they can show up differently for the children in their lives.

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That belief became the foundation for Teach • Coach • Parent (TCP)—a platform focused on helping adults recognize their patterns, regulate their responses, and create environments where kids feel safe enough to grow.

Through speaking, workshops, and writing, I work with educators, coaches, and parents who want to move beyond reaction and into intention.

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Because the goal isn’t perfection.

It’s awareness. It’s responsibility.

And it’s showing up in ways that children don’t have to recover from.

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