I am a graduate of The Pennsylvania State University (Bachelor of Science and Master of Regional Planning) and Virginia Commonwealth University (Master of Public Administration). I am an Army Security Agency (Analyst) veteran who served in Korea and Germany. I worked in positions in local, regional, and state government managing the environment while promoting economic development. I was adjunct faculty with the University of Southern Maine, University of Virginia, and the Virginia Commonwealth of Virginia teaching graduate and undergraduate courses the planning and environmental management systems. I was a Faculty Fellow with the Center for Organizational and Technological Advancement (COTA) at Virginia Tech. While most of my teaching has been at the college level, my passion is helping students to read - to begin or improve reading skills and capabilities, as well as public speaking. I have experience in teaching reading with students who are just beginning to read, are advanced but want to improve, or students who have difficulty reading due to conditions such as dyslexia. My philosophy regarding reading may be summed up in a quote by Sally Huss, 1992, " The world is like a library with each person a separate book. Each book contains a wondrous story and no two stories are the same. In my lifetime, I wonder how many books I can open, how many books I can read, and how many books I can love."