I am a grad student at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. I received my Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from the University of Florida in 1991. I taught elementary music for 12 years. In 2003, I decided to "find myself", and I left teaching. Two years and a few community college classes later, I became employed as head test proctor and lead reading and writing tutor at a learning lab at Brevard Community College. Two years later, I transferred to the Call Center and became an Information Specialist. In the meantime, I earned certificates in Multimedia and another in Graphic Design from Sessions College of Art. In 2010, I began working on my Master's Degree in Instructional Technology, and I am currently in my third semester. So, basically, education is in my blood. I have been in school, in one way or another, for 38 continuous years.
I have traveled all over the world. I have visited 48 states and over 35 countries. I lived in New Zealand for a year, when I was a child. My parents showed me (and my siblings) the world - and then took us there. We traveled all over New Zealand, Australia, Africa, Central America, and Europe. Some of my favorite places in all the world are Etosha National Park, Namibia, Salzburg, Austria, Queenstown, New Zealand,Magic Kingdom at Disney World, Kruger National Park in South Africa, and Dinkelsbühl, Germany.
I have had the distinct honor of participating in the World's Longest Banana Split in Selinsgrove, PA, in 1988, a record that still holds true today. My students sang in the PBS program, The World's Largest Concert, held at Epcot Center at Disney World, three years in a row in the early 2000's. In addition, several of my students sang with Kenny Rogers in his Christmas from the Heart holiday concert in 2000. In 2004, I won an art contest and had the honor of painting a mural of the United States at an elementary school in Palm Bay, Florida. The mural, which was to aid students in learning their states, state capitals, and other state facts, was a whopping 65 feet long and 8 feet high, and took six months to paint. While at Brevard Community College, I started two writing clubs: Nib & Ink at the Titusville Campus and Ink Slingers at the Melbourne Campus. I was the student founding editor of the Titusville Campus's Newsletter, The Pink Paper, and entered and was published in several issues (2004-2007) of BCC's online e-zine, The Proteus Review. In 2008, I took over as editor of The Proteus Review.
I love to paint, sew, quilt, scrapbook, sing, compose, write, and do all sorts of arts and crafts.
While I am not currently teaching, I hope to teach again in the near future. I have been an educator my entire adult life, a career I chose in kindergarten. I am using this blog vehicle to explore the world of educational technology, and to share what I learn with others. I hope that you will come back and join in the conversation. It's a big world (wide web) out there, and there is a lot to discover.
(c) 2011 Christi Scheirer
