I graduated summa cum laude with a BA in English Literature from Chapman University, where I received University and Departmental Honors. Later, I returned to Chapman to earn a Single Subject Teaching Credential and CLAD Certificate.
I have taught high school English and conducted writing and study skills workshops at Fordham University. I tutored for two years with Professional Tutors of America in Los Angeles and Sonoma counties. I specialized in No Child Left Behind math and reading skills. I tutored with Tutoring Club of Petaluma where I taught math, reading, writing, study skills, and SAT Verbal preparation. I opened the Christie Johnson Learning Center in 2009 so I could have the freedom to customize students’ curriculum and instruction. We have been growing ever since.
I have also worked outside of education and like to apply concepts to the “real world.” I find it helps students understand that learning is not just something you do for school: learning gives tools for life.
My passion for education is centered in the belief that everyone can reach his or her own full potential. With hard work, dedication, and a little fun along the way, students see that “education” is a broad term for learning about the world and our place in it. One is not educated because he or she can recite the times tables or the generals of World War I. Instead, education comes from asking “why” and “how” and exploring the answers and the further questions.