Biography and Teaching Experience

I grew up in South Dakota and lived in many places in that beautiful state.
I graduated from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, South Dakota in 1996 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and Psychology. I got married to Chris
Determan in August of 1996. I had a daughter in 2000. In December of 2002, I
earned my K-8 Teaching Certificate from Sinte Gleska University in Mission, South Dakota. I did my first year of teaching (First Grade) on the Rosebud Indian Reservation for the Todd County School District in Rosebud, South Dakota from August 2002 to May 2003. Then my husband and I moved to Benson, AZ, where I taught Second Grade at Benson Primary School for two years. I had a son in 2004. I decided to teach Fourth Grade at Benson Primary School in August of 2004, and that is where I continue to teach today.