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My Values & Experience

I have a demonstrated history of supporting children and families

My vision to make decisions in the best interest of our district's families and children aligns with my history of advocating for children. I have a demonstrated history throughout my entire adult life of working to better the lives of children:
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  • Pediatric social worker - I worked with children who were in remission from childhood cancer to address the learning and long-term impacts of chemotherapy on their social, emotional, and educational growth
  • Pediatric nurse - I worked on an inpatient hospital unit providing care to children newly diagnosed with diabetes and provided care to children enrolled in research studies 
  • Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) - In this volunteer role, I am a CASA to children experiencing abuse or neglect. I build an ongoing personal relationship with the children and advocate in court for services they may need and ultimately for a safe, nurturing, and permanent home.
  • Anderson Township Athletes as Leaders - I volunteer as a sponsor coordinator and mentor for a program that pairs a running training program with a women's leadership program for Anderson Township high school girls.
  • Camp nurse - I volunteered as a camp nurse at a summer camp for children
  • Embrace ERG - I co-founded the Embrace Employee Resource Group at Cincinnati Children's Hospital that advocated for resources to support employees growing their family through adoption and foster care. 
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I believe that one of the most powerful ways to empower children and provide children with the foundation to achieve a productive and successful future is through education. One of my most rewarding roles is as an educator. In addition to the teaching and mentoring involved in my role as a nurse researcher, I have served as an adjunct professor in several colleges of nursing throughout the city. 
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I have healthcare and mental health expertise

My experiences as a social worker and a nurse provide me unique perspectives to bring to state-level legislation and funding decisions. During the pandemic, we witnessed the tremendous work of nurses, teachers, workers, and parents. While many of us knew there were things to improve in healthcare and in education even before the pandemic, COVID-19 really shone light on some gaps in our systems. The best way to honor the tireless work of our community members for the past two years is to develop legislation and allocate funding to address these system-level gaps. Additionally, there is evidence that mental health issues are increasing and I would advocate for proactive programs and legislation to increase access to mental health services.  

I served as an expert for the media to help community members understand the COVID-19 vaccine research and be able to make educated decisions about whether to choose to obtain the COVID-19 vaccine. 

Local 12 News Interview (Jan 11, 2021): Herd Immunity












Fox19 News Interview (Jan 28, 2021): COVID-19 Vaccine: Answering your Questions































 

I have strategic-level servant leadership experience

I am a nurse leader and oversee nursing research throughout an entire healthcare system. In this role, I am involved in system-level proactive strategizing and serve as a servant leader. 

In addition to my primary job, I have served on numerous strategic level committees and boards. These experiences provide me skills to drive evidence-based and data-driven discussions and decisions with a focus on supporting and advocating for children, families, and community members. 

I value honesty, integrity, collaboration, and transparency

In my training as a social worker, I focused my courses on interpersonal communications and relationships. These skills have proven priceless in working with people with diverse views and often conflicting opinions. I have found that listening to understand diverse perspectives, being honest and upfront in my views and goals, and being open to self-reflection allows me to work collaboratively to identify common goals. I would bring these skills to my work at the statehouse.
 
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