Maribeth holds a B.S. in Special Education from Appalachian State University and a M.Ed. in Severe/Profound Disabilities from the University of North Carolina—Charlotte. At William Monroe High School in Stanardsville, VA, Maribeth enjoys teaching Earth Science and Environmental Science collaboratively with a general educator, and Small Group Special Education. She finds it deeply satisfying to take on students who could not pass the eighth grade Science test and give them the knowledge and confidence to pass the ninth grade Earth Science standardized test.
Technology has always held a special allure for Maribeth, and she was quick to enter a contest several years ago to win a Mimio interactive system. "After I won my Mimio system," she says, "I started using it right away in my classroom."
Other teachers soon noticed this new technology and started asking questions. When the school principal caught wind of it, he began observing Maribeth’s use of the Mimio in her classroom. Not long after that, he ordered several for selected teachers to try. Last year the school ordered 30 Mimio units, and Maribeth says that more will come this year. It’s clear that the school is now well on its way to becoming a "Mimio school."
After 27 years of teaching, Maribeth is very clear on how Mimio can improve the classroom experience: "Mimio makes interaction fun and easy for teachers and students." Even her more difficult students enjoy lessons more. She especially loves the MimioPad wireless tablet, because she finds that students are much more willing to use the tablet at their desks than to come to the board. She says she is hoping to become the first "all Mimio, all the time" classroom in her district with the addition of some of the new MimioClassroom products.
Maribeth was a member of the NSTA Mimio Teacher Team in 2009 and 2010, and became a Mimio Master in 2010. She’s now the Mimio Trainer at her school, and is pleased that one of her collaborating teachers will begin the Mimio Master’s program this fall.
Among her many honors, Maribeth is a Discovery Star Educator and an Educator of the Year finalist for Greene County Public Schools.