I come from a family of educators and have been working with children for many years. I've been active in a variety of other fields ranging from being an information technology instructor to being a lead ranch hand in Texas. I am a community activist for social justice and an environmental education advocate. For the last five years I've worked in partnership with the National Science Foundation, Creative Kids and learninginplaces.org to develop a program that is transforming how science education is taught to young children. My degree from University of Washington is in Cognitive Psychology and Linguistics. My hobbies are gardening, restoring vintage clothing and inventing machines.