Saturday, January 10, 2009

Welcome!

1 comment:

  1. I am originally from Salem, Oregon. I went to elementary, junior high and high school in Salem. My high school was the South Salem Saxons. I grew up in the beautiful Willamette Valley region of Oregon which is quite green and lush with massive forests. I graduated from the University of Oregon with a B.S. in Biology, and later from the Oregon Health Sciences University with a B.S. in Medical Technology. I spent the next sixteen years working at various interesting jobs, all having to do with DNA technology. The job that was the most interesting one for me was genetically engineering tomatoes to delay the ripening process. My job sent me to Palm Springs and Southern Florida to conduct field testing on these crops.

    I moved to San Diego in 1995, the hometown of my wife who I have been married to almost 22 years. Somewhere along the way, we adopted our two daughters from China. Besides incredible paperwork, translations, hoops to jump through, we spent two weeks in China, seeing the Emperor's Palace, the Great Wall and of course meeting our daughters. We did this process twice, once for each of our daughters. It was truly an unforgettable experience and our daughters, ages 5 and 9 are magnificent. As a stay-at-home-dad, I had to deal with being a bit isolated from the "real" world. But at the same time, internet technologies were my saving grace. The internet, forums, blogs gave me a way to virtually connect to the outside world. I have met some of my greatest friends via the web, and embrace the technology everyday as a vital source of comradarie, exploration and connection. When I worked in science, EVERYONE used the MacIntosh platform, but at home I was comfortable with the PC format. So I have become fluent in both technologies.

    As stated earlier, I became a stay-at-home-Dad. I did this for about six years, taking care of the children, the house, and the yard. I soon learned this was the most challenging job I had ever had, but also the most rewarding. As the girls entered school, I started to ponder my next career move. This is when the idea of teaching appealed to me. I would work basically the same hours as the children were in school, and I didn't want to go back to the corporate laboratory setting. I currently am working part-time as a teacher's aide in a special education class at a local elementary school while I pursue my teaching credential part-time, mostly taking evening classes. This part of the mission staement speaks out to me "We are committed to diversity, educational equity, and social justice" That is what I truly feel as well, that no student should be denied an education based on their background, race, culture or disability. Everyone should have the opportunity for learning and to grow and achieve success. As a teacher, I will strive to make sure that this occurs on a daily basis.

    When I am not working, going to school or taking care of my family, you will most likely find me gardening on our 1.5 acre property in Ramona. I am currently growing apples, peaches, nectarines, plums, lemons, limes, pomegranates, tomatoes, onions, chile peppers, lettuce, cherries, berries, hops, almonds, avocados and numerous varities of flowers. I also am involved in an off-roading club, and take my H2 Hummer out on precarious trails looking for adventure and not the mall.

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