1. Share who you are. My name is Brenda and I have lived in Florida for most of my life. I am a wife and mother of five children. Three girls ages 31, 29, and 21 and one son 22. My oldest son would be 30 but he was killed by a drunk driver at the age of 22 in a car wreck. I have 15 grandchildren and two on the way. I have four dogs, two miniature horses, one goat, and 3 grown cats and three kittens. I enjoy baking cakes for my grandchildren, spending time with family, fishing, gardening, and reading books. My home is located about 20 miles from the University of Florida and I love the Florida Gators. I am a domestic violence survivor and helped the state of Florida start the 911 Cell Phone Program for Victims of Domestic Violence in 1996. I am also a thyroid cancer survivor and continue to take medication for my thyroid which had to be removed. I also deal with a daughter that is bipolar and takes many risk. I am always on the go having to pick her up from dangerous situation on at least once a month. Currently I am disabled but hope one day in my future that my health will improve.

5. My professional background & experience (especially any dealing with education), and your personal interests Most of my life and my career has been centered around children and elderly people. My first job was driving a school bus and working in the school cafeteria. My second job was working for the Department of Children and Families running a daycare out of my home for parents on welfare to go back to school. My third job was owning my own small business Tender Loving Care. I would care for patient living in nursing homes and in their own homes. I also volunteered for the Girl Scouts of America and was a Brownie Troop Leader for several years. My favorite job was tending to the elderly. Listening and talking to the elderly is like having an open history book because they tell how America was built, surviving the Great Depression, and many more subjects.

6. My Educational Background Graduated from Loften High School. Santa Fe Community College – Certified Nursing Assistant Ivy Tech – Certified Nursing Assistant/Home Health Care Ashford University – BA in Psychology and Sociology

7. My Current enrollment at Asford Online Currently I am enrolled in the Family and Community Services (MAED) online course at Ashford University online. I hope to teach an online class in the future. I am looking forward to helping my grandchildren with dyslexia in school by using the methods that I am learning about new assistive technology to brighten their learning experience and bringing them to a new found love of learning. In the future I hope to overcome my own disabilities and return to the workforce and teach a K-5 th grade class. To bring new technology of today into the classroom to show student that learning can be fun.

8. My experience throughout school During my time as a student in public school, I did not enjoy nor like school. When I was in school, I was a very shy child and had sever anxieties about being away from home. I started kindergarten at the age of four. At the very end of the year I turned five. Attending school made me emotionally sick and I suffered from deliberating Migraine headaches. During the mid 70’s and early 80’s school seemed more to me like the teacher were more worried and taught the students how to socialize among one another. In middle school I always maintained the A/B Honor Roll and went to Honor Class in high school. I received my GED form Loften High School.

9. Who had an impact on my life and pushed me toward an education. Jean and Huge Puder my best friend and former employer has given me the push and encouragement to return to school. When I met these two people I had no high school diploma. Jean and Huge have continued to support and encourage my education. Huge told me to reach high and be the best I could be no matter what field I decide to enter. Be a role model for my children and that life is about learning.