CST 515 - Spring 2010
The College of Notre Dame
Fear is a manipulative emotion that can trick us into living a boring life.
— Donald Miller (A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life)
Research for CST515: Privacy and Technology | Freedom of Speech | New Communication | Social
CST 515 Technology and Communication is my second class toward completion of the requirements for a master's degree in Contemporary Communication. I am enjoying the variety of courses that this MA program offers. I also completed Com 517 Gender and Communication in the Fall of 2009 and look forward to the other course offerings in the program. CST 517 is my first ever Computer Science class and I am pretty excited about the practical applications of the knowledge I will gain in this course.
I grew up in Upstate New York, where I also completed my undergraduate degree. My B.A. in English was completed in December 1996 from Utica College of Syacuse University. I also attended Nazareth College for my first two years of undergraduate schooling before transfering to Utica. While there, I switched my major from business administration to English, causing a significant shift in my future career path. Despite the English degree, I went to work in sales and marketing upon graduation. While working in the sales force, I held jobs with companies such as Fraternal Composite Service, Gannett, Inc., and CareerBuilder.com. The job with CareerBuilder brought my family and me to Maryland, where I eventually began my career in teaching. Though my sales career was going well, I couldn't envision myself doing it long term, and I still had the desire to teach English. I taught physical education three times a week at a private Christian school while I completed requirements for Maryland teaching certification. I was hired by Harford County Public Schools in July 2002 to teach English at C. Milton Wright High School, where I still work today. Currently, I teach tenth grade English, coach cross country, and sponsor the school's chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
As a teacher, we are required to continually educate ourselves throughout our careers to increase our teaching efficacy and remain highly qualified within our field. Completing a master's degree is the major part of this requirement. While I am required to do this by my profession, I am sure that I would be seeking to further my higher education regardless. Continuing to learn is one element that makes life continue to be interesting and fun. I do not have ambitions to become an administrator of any sort, or to break away from the teaching profession, so my choice of master's program had less to do with career advancement and more about being part of an academic program that appealed to me. So far, this Contemporary Communication program has been a good fit for me.
In my spare time, I enjoy the following activities:
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