Marie grew up in Northern Utah where she enjoyed skiing, mountain biking, hiking and fishing. She graduated from Weber State University with a Degree in Education and Fine Arts. Marie’s great passions in life are teaching mathematics and fine arts. Her travels took her to Montana, Chicago, and back to Utah where she has enjoyed many teaching experiences.

She feels privileged to have been in the education field for more than 15 years. During Marie’s math teaching career, she has focused on conceptual learning which emphasizes understanding math concepts rather than memorization of isolated facts. Her belief is that students who learn this way understand mathematical ideas and then transfer their understanding to new contexts and problems. Math time becomes enjoyable when students are not memorizing procedures but learning a new way to solve problems. As students gain confidence they recognize they are more capable than originally thought and can transfer this new found confidence to their mathematical studies as well as other parts of their lives.

The most important thing in Marie’s life is her family. She loves spending time with her parents, brothers, sisters in law, and nieces and nephew. In her free time Marie enjoys painting, gardening, hiking, skiing, and spending time with family and friends.