Publications & Presentations
You Don't Have to Be Tech-Savvy, Just Curious: An Educator's Guide to Embracing AI
I was honored to be asked to be the keynote speaker at the 2025 WSU AI Symposium. In this interactive keynote, I showed educators how to use AI to save time, spark creativity, and better support their learners, without needing to be “tech-savvy.” Through live demos, audience challenges, and gamified AI team activities, I helped educators see that curiosity, not coding, drives innovation. Together, we explored practical, relevant ways to make AI an ally in teaching, learning, and leading.
https://news.winona.edu/22659/winona-state-hosts-summer-symposium-on-ai-in-education/
Photo credit: Kara Rathmell Lindaman
From Dissertation to Innovation: How Research Fueled the Development of Gamified Educational Software
In this presentation, I share how my doctoral research on gamified MTSS Tier 2 reading interventions became the foundation for an adaptive educational game prototype. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory and the Technology Acceptance Model, I illustrate how autonomy, competence, and relatedness translate into practical design features like adaptive difficulty, reward systems, and player choice. The session walks through key findings on student achievement and engagement, explores the patenting process behind the resulting software, and highlights how rigorous academic research can drive real-world EdTech innovation. https://openriver.winona.edu/rca/2025/oralpresentations/1/
Dissertation: Impact of Gamified Learning Software vs. Traditional Teaching Methods with MTSS Tier 2 Intervention Students
This ex post facto quantitative study examined how gamified learning software compared with traditional teacher-led instruction in a middle-school MTSS Tier 2 reading intervention. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory and the Technology Acceptance Model, it analyzed academic and engagement data from 22 sixth-grade students using FastBridge assessments, the Wisconsin Forward Exam, Edmentum analytics, attendance, and behavior records. Overall, the findings suggest that gamification can enhance motivation and behavior for some learners but that its impact on standardized achievement is variable, warranting further research on long-term outcomes, subject-specific effects, and optimal implementation within MTSS frameworks.
You can watch the dissertation defense here: https://youtu.be/FDWxHOeHftA
Game changers: How emerging technologies impact digital game-based learning (DGBL)
This paper explores how emerging technologies have shaped and expanded the field of digital game-based learning (DGBL), transforming how students engage with educational content. Tracing innovations from early computing and B.F. Skinner’s teaching machine to modern advancements such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence, adaptive learning, and the metaverse, the paper highlights how each technology contributes to creating more personalized, immersive, and interactive learning environments. It discusses the proven benefits of DGBL—including increased motivation, engagement, and mastery of content—while also addressing ethical challenges such as data privacy, unequal access to technology, and teacher preparedness.
https://openriver.winona.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=educationeddbooks
Purpose, Empowerment, and Persistence: The Trifecta of Doctoral Student Success
This paper explores how purpose, empowerment, and persistence form the critical foundation for doctoral student success. It argues that defining a clear purpose provides motivation and direction, empowerment fosters autonomy and confidence through supportive academic and professional relationships, and persistence—rooted in grit and passion—enables students to overcome obstacles and sustain progress.
All About You! Pre-Birth to 5 Years Old
This interactive baby memory book turns your child’s earliest milestones into a personalized story you can read together. From first kicks to first birthdays, “All About You!” blends poetry, prompts, and keepsake pages into one heartwarming journey from pre-birth to five years old.
Delavan Christian Reformed Church: Favorite Recipes 2012
This book contains a collection of over 400 favorite recipes of the parishioners of Delavan Christian Reformed Church, Delavan, Wisconsin. The book features 8 1/2" x 11" pages, with one page per recipe, giving you room to make your own notes, plus a nutritional table for each recipe to help you with your nutritional planning.