When I was young I dreamt of being a best-selling author. Science was not my favorite subject, but all of that changed when I read a Newsweek article about Quantum Mechanics during summer vacation. I thought I’d never read anything so exciting and magical in my life, and was desperate to learn more. With a burning desire to understand the marvels of physics I went to the University of Portland and received a Bachelors of Science in Physics and Spanish, but before graduation, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. One day I went to a poetry reading by Eleanor Swanson and listened to her read poems about the life and work of Marie Curie and it hit me. Passion and joy are meant to be shared, and science is the pursuit of those two things: passion for understanding and joy in discovery.  I wanted to share my passion with others, with young people like I had been when I read that Newsweek article and transformed my goals and dreams, and so I decided to become a teacher. I completed my Master of Arts in Teaching at the University of Portland and then moved back to my hometown of Olympia, Washington. I taught science at Chinook Middle School for eight years and am ecstatic to be in my fifth year here at North Thurston High School teaching STEM Physics, AP Physics and Robotics. I am also thrilled to continue coaching our FTC Robotics teams in our after school club.