I am a passionate scholar, teacher, and social justice advocate. After teaching preschool and working as a Head Start program manager in charge of mental health and disability services in southeastern Michigan, I received my masters and doctorate from the University of Minnesota. While in my sixth year of teaching in higher education settings, my current research interests include the intersection of holistic education practices with transformational education for all students. I also study cooperative learning, moral development, peace education, and ways to create schools that meet the various needs of all students in creative and responsive ways. Additionally, action learning, action research, and action teaching and transformational leadership within education all continue to be research and policy areas of interest of mine. I am currently working on a large scale study of the impact of transformational leadership on charter schools in Texas, as well as examining the impact of these charter schools on the risk and resilience of their graduates.