WHAT IS EXPANSIVE HEART CONSULTING?
My pedagogy centers around social justice, self-reflexivity, and Mindfulness. As a teacher of pre- and in-service teachers, I begin every course with exercises that invite students to look intimately at the privilege (or lack thereof) that they bring to their own classrooms.
By coming to understand the identities, privileges and subjugations they bring to their classrooms, they learn to have empathy for themselves as well as their students.
This self-reflexivity and empathy training lays the foundation to explore in-depth structural issues that permeate our (educational) system: Racism; classism; ableism; hetero-sexism; etc.
Utilizing personal narrative, story-telling and Mindfulness as tools to navigate potentially challenging conversations, I see my job as a consultant as one that holds space for difficult topics, while encouraging everyone to remain honest and willing to walk through the discomfort, trusting that on the other side of the discomfort is a new, more sustainable way of communicating. Educators will walk away from our time together feeling seen and heard, with new tools to use in their workplace and most likely in their social lives as well.
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“Six months later, we are still utilizing the strategies she shared with us and I have seen a significant difference in the office.”
ABOUT ME
I am an educator. A mother. A coach. A seeker.
I began my career as a kindergarten teacher in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2002. In 2003 I moved to Brooklyn, New York to attend graduate school. I taught high school math and science, working in inclusive classrooms for the next 6 years. In 2009 I made the difficult decision to leave k-12 teaching in order to pursue my doctorate in education. While in graduate school, I taught pre- and in-service special education teachers how to be effective educators, mentors and advocates. I moved to Southern California in 2017 as a tenure-track faculty in the Department of Teaching and Learning at The University of Redlands.
I currently teach undergraduate, masters and doctoral students. In addition to teaching full time in the School of Education, I lead workshops and lectures that address systematic injustices within the field of expansive field of education. Through story-telling and personal narrative, I ask participants in my workshops and lectures to get curious about the identities they bring to their classroom/ school/ work community. I also ask participants to get willing to think about what biases they bring to their classroom/ school/ work community. Finally, I ask participants to get courageous and take action towards individual and organizational growth.
MY PROMISE
I am committed to focusing on the strengths of your organization, while we unravel the issues that feel challenging. I will hold space for everyone to feel seen and heard. I promise to allow room for discomfort, knowing that where there is discomfort, there is growth on the other side.
REVIEWS
“I was looking for a facilitator who could work with my HR department to have open and honest reflection about what we needed to do to go from good to great.”
“She created a safe environment for my staff to be vulnerable and reflective about how their actions and reactions impact our department.”
“Staff make a daily effort to have a positive attitude and a customer service driven focus. ”