College Counselors

What do you do at Perkiomen?

• Associate Director of College Counseling
• Director of Testing (SAT Supervisor, ACT Supervisor, TOEFL Supervisor, PSAT Coordinator, AP Coordinator)
• Head Varsity Swimming Coach
• Assistant Varsity Track Coach
• Choreographer of the winter musical
• AMERICAN Red Cross lifeguard instructor/certified lifeguard
• CPR instructor
• Supervised study hall proctor

What is your favorite Perkiomen tradition/event?
There have been many over the years, but the highlights include, singing the alma mater, the graduation processional line, swimming team snow relays, attending Penn Relays with the track team and Easterns with the swimmers, Vespers service, and May 1st college acceptance celebrations!

Tell us a little about your college search:
My college search started when my sister, who is five years older, started visiting colleges.  I was able to tour multiple schools which helped me realize that I wanted to go to a small liberal arts college.  I believed this type of school would expose me to different perspectives and ways of thinking.  I've always loved solving puzzles and being challenged.  This lead to pursuing my two passions, mathematics and dance, as double majors.  It was difficult to find schools that had both programs, but my dad was a huge support, helping me identify and visit colleges in NC, OH, VT, ME, NY, and CT over the summer.  With my father as a guide, I also had interviews consisting anywhere from meeting alums in coffee shops, to current seniors or admissions officers in admissions buildings.  Participating in Division III sports were also a big factor in choosing my list of schools to apply.  I made sure to speak with the track & field and swimming coaches on each visit.

Visits to one school in particular stuck out with me.  At Denison, I connected with the student interviewer over a shared a common experience and it made me feel that there were students with similar interests there.  I returned for an overnight experience for the performing arts so I could learn more about their dance program.  Meeting with the swimming coach helped me understand that I wouldn’t be able to swim and dance at Denison.  The track coach, however, had a different prospective.  He valued us as students first and athletes second, which appealed to me as a student-athlete. College is really about finding who you are as a student and pursing those passions in a community that will value these experiences.  I love helping my students have these “AH HA” moments when they discover a program or a school that fits them.

Professional involvement outside of Perkiomen:
I am a member of the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS).

I am also a member of the Pennsylvania Association for College Admission Counseling (PACAC), and have been involved with the Conference Planning Committee (CPC), currently as co-chair of the Sessions Subcommittee, but have been co-chair of our Secondary School Counselors and Hospitality committees.  I have also organized and run a college tour for four years connected to our annual conference.  I have presented on multiple topics related to testing, international students, hot topics in the field with other college counselors.  I have also coordinated a workshop for new admission counselors and support staff.  

I am currently on two counselor advisory boards for colleges including Lebanon Valley College and Moravian College.

I attend many workshops related to testing through the College Board and ACT, most recently in the changes for the AP test procedures.

I love visiting college campuses and often make additional stops in family vacations.

What do you like to do when you aren’t working or on duty?
I am a mother of two (Trent - 9 and Allie - 4).  They keep me pretty busy with gymnastics, dance, soccer, basketball, and baseball events.  I love to read, run, swim, sing and dance.  I currently teach a Sunday school class at my church for two-year-olds and younger and coach my daughter’s soccer team.

My family loves to travel.  Our family vacations include trips to National Parks as we are trying to see all of them together.  We have visited Acadia, Rocky Mountain, Badlands, and Wind Cave.  We also love games, especially European board games and strategy games.  You can often find a game in progress being played by my advisory group.