"The EDEF program will ultimately equip me to contribute to a field that has meant so much to me, my development, and my liberation."

Hometown

Florence, MS

Department

Educational Foundations

Related Degrees

• PhD, Education: Educational Foundations

Why did you want to be a part of the Social Media Ambassador Program (SMAP)?
I wished to be a Social Media Ambassador for my program because UHM’s PhD in EDEF degree has empowered me not only to reclaim my educational story, but also to tell it. By serving as an Ambassador, I hope to share how the program can do the same for others.

Why did you choose to pursue to pursue the PhD in Education, Foundations of Transformative Education program?
I chose to pursue a PhD in EDEF because I intend to explore how education has been wielded as a tool to bring about societal change and how it has been used to both oppress and empower different groups of people, past and present. My own K-12 education was intended to keep my horizons very close and to serve as a mirror reflecting back on and validating my worldview. It was not until I began my undergraduate program at a liberal arts college that Plato’s light of academia began to peek through. Suddenly, I was surrounded by voices and experiences that had been silenced. As my landscape changed, so did I. Through understanding others, I began to understand myself better; through hearing their stories, I learned how to tell my own. The EDEF program will ultimately equip me to contribute to a field that has meant so much to me, my development, and my liberation.

Where do you work?
I am a fifth grade teacher in the Hawaiʻi DOE.

Did anyone in particular inspire you to pursue a career in education?
As silly as it may sound, from a young age I was inspired by fictional characters to pursue a career in education. Jo March, Anne of Green Gables, and Caddie Woodlawn provided examples of passionate professionals, dedicated to the advancement of themselves and others through education. As a girl with limited representations of working women, their career choice seemed like a way forward for me.

How is the COE program impacting or benefiting your career path?
Participating in the COE program has been so rewarding! Upon my acceptance, I worried that I didn’t have what it takes to be successful in the degree I had chosen. However, the past two years that I have spent learning and growing within the COE have left me feeling confident and competent in both myself and my research.

Do you participate in any clubs or organizations in or outside of school?
I enjoy volunteering at a local high school.