Our Faculty and Staff

I have been in school administration since 2012 and am currently working toward completing my Ed.D. in Educational Leadership.  I am a big proponent of a well-rounded education that includes an emphasis on related arts and character education.  I love my job because I get to lead great people in making a difference in the lives of our students.

I received my Bachelor’s Degree from Ball State University in fall of 2016. I am currently seeking my Master’s Degree in Education through Ball State University. I am so thankful to work at Burris and be a part of the Burris family. Working at Burris has encouraged me to follow my true passion to be an elementary teacher. I will graduate from Ball State next year and want to be a kindergarten or first grade teacher.

A Burris parent prior to becoming staff, I wanted to find a way to give back to the school community. The aide position allows me to help both faculty and students work toward academic success.

I am in my 15th year of teaching.  This is my 5th year at Burris.  I have taught in all grades 1 through 6.

I have taught in a variety of settings – from an after-school program for at-risk kids to a small town junior/senior high school, and now Burris Laboratory School. No matter where I teach my goal is the same, to create lifelong learners who value the written word and think deeply about what they are reading, who are able to communicate their thoughts and opinions with clarity and conviction through writing and speaking, and are prepared to contribute to the conversation in the world around them.

I hold a B.A. in English Education & Theatre Education from Ball State University and a graduate certificate in Nonprofit Management from IUPUI. In addition to teaching in public schools, I have created and facilitated theatre programming for a variety of schools and nonprofits in the greater Indianapolis area.

Teaching Spanish is exciting! I enjoy interacting with students. I always feel inspired by my students’ drive. I believe in a flexible approach of instruction, where students are encouraged to evaluate, interpret, and apply their new foreign language skills and cultural knowledge beyond the surface level.

I hold a master’s degree in Counseling, Educational Psychology, and a certificate in High Ability Education. I have several years of experience of counseling in both the school and private practice setting. Though I work with students of all ages at Burris, I have a passion for elementary and high ability students. I have a heart for meeting students where they are emotionally, socially, and academically; I am dedicated to helping them grow and develop their skills in these areas.

I have been an educator for 20 years, teaching at primary, upper elementary, and university levels. The majority of my career has been spent in elementary grades 1 and 2 teaching high ability and general education students at several schools in Muncie.

I teach both Health and Physical Education from a wellness standpoint emphasizing the whole person. I currently coach Volleyball (assistant), Ladies Basketball, and Track and Field.

I have been an elementary educator for 19 years with experience in second and third grades. I have an undergraduate degree from Indiana University and a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education from Ball State.

Books and technology are my passion. I believe that when students are given the ability to explore what is of interest to them in a structured but open classroom, the sky is the limit!

The 2018-2019 academic year will begin my third year at Burris and my third year teaching overall. I take an active approach to social studies. My goal is for students to not just know history, but for them to do history so that one day they will change history.

During my 18 years of teaching, my goals have continued to include collaborating with parents to inspire a love of learning in my students. My wish for the children who come through my class is that they will always be kind, rise to difficult challenges, and become problem solvers.

I’ve been at Burris since 2012, and I love teaching middle school language arts here.  My areas of interest include reading workshop, project-based learning, curriculum development, and high ability education.

This is my fifth year teaching at Burris. I love working with all of the Burris students and I probably enjoy the adventures that we go on the most. Seeing students in different environments such as Camp Crosley, Japan, Conner Prairie, the statehouse, or even at events on campus reminds me how special our school is.  Burris is an example of education in action and I am so proud to be a part of that.

I have completed my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, both in Speech-Language Pathology, at Ball State University. I began working at Burris in 2016. My job as the speech-language pathologist at Burris is so rewarding!  I thoroughly enjoy getting to know my students on an individual and small group basis. I love to see my students gain confidence when they are able to communicate more effectively as we work together to improve their speech and language skills.

Since joining the Burris Faculty in 2014 as a member of the Mathematics Department, I have loved being in an environment where students and faculty support and encourage each other through both struggles and successes! Some of my most rewarding experiences in teaching have been watching students push through their mental block when it comes to understanding mathematical concepts. It is a privilege to be a part of the moment when a student realizes they can put into practice the skills we have learned together to solve what used to be an unsolvable problem, building confidence in their own abilities.

I have taught Social Studies to grades 7-12 for 14 years; this is my third at Burris Laboratory School. I enjoy reading mysteries and history books, traveling and spending time with my husband, Nick and two children, Vivian, 9 and Henry, 5.

I have been a teacher at Burris since August 1999. I believe it is important for students to be able to construct their knowledge about mathematics.

My students are rewarded for effort, process, and progress and not correctness, and are encouraged to aspire to understand versus being understood. The Spanish language and culture instruction aims to affect the learner to progress from being a local citizen to that of a self-actualized, global, bilingual citizen who is empathetic to other cultures, races, genders, religions, economic inequality, and political perspectives beyond the local environment.

I have been a performing musician over 30 years, a private lesson teacher over 20, and a secondary classroom music educator for the past twelve years.

My classroom is rooted in multifaceted, student-centered, and self-directed learning models. Action Based Research is performed yearly around the most recent physiological research to enhance individual cardiovascular health, leg strength, hand-grip, healthy eating behaviors, and flexibility. My research interests include climbing and hand-grip and its impact on K-12 education, student-centered/self-direct learning, participatory learning, and transformational learning. The 2017-2018 School year will focus around a climbing project funded through Discovery Education. Please come visit our PE classroom to see the children’s creations on the climbing wall.

I am driven to be innovative in the teaching process. I am certified in Orton Gillingham, a reading approach that helps students understand how to read and spell. I look for ways to make learning fun and I love seeing those moments in my students’ faces when they are in awe of what they can do.