Introduction Letter

Hello, my name is Vanessa Peed and I live in Oceanside with my husband and 22 month daughter. I grew up for the most part of my childhood in El Toro, CA. I attended kindergarten through most of my ninth grade in El Toro but after moving from one part of the city to another every couple of years like gypsies, my mother finally settled us into the city of Dana Point for a while. The summer between our move from El Toro to Dana Point I was very lucky to have earned an exchange student scholarship to Ecuador. I lived in Quito, Ecuador for four months, which I definitely considered to be an education in itself. After returning home, I completed my remaining high school years at Dana Hills High. At that point, I made the decision to move out on my own and began to work full-time in addition to taking courses in the afternoons and nights at Saddleback College. Although working full-time through college was difficult, I had a lot of inspiration from a couple of brilliant retired professors who encouraged me through those very demanding lower division years until I transferred to Cal State Fullerton. I graduated from CSUF in 2004 with my BA in Anthropology.

Honestly, I have to admit that I knew very little about how to use computers until I started college. I had a no-name company build me a cheap basic computer for school and this is where my experience began. After getting my own computer, I learned the basics such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and the Internet as it became more popular. I also began learning the QuickBooks accounting software almost ten years ago for my husband’s construction company so I’ve become very proficient in this program. Sadly, I am so dependent on technology that without it I feel a bit lost. From running my business to simply paying bills, my everyday life involves technology in some way or another. In respects to which type person I consider myself, I would have to say I’m a Mac person. The PC had always been my preference until my husband and I decided to purchase an iMac back in 2006 so we could have separate stations to work on for our business. It wasn’t until my beloved PC that I had built for my college days decided to crash on me last year that I was forced to learn how to use the Mac very quickly. Now, with more Mac experience, I am definitely beginning to prefer the Mac to the PC but I know there is a lot more I can and want to learn on it.

Though the mission statement didn't directly effect me in choosing CSUSM for their teaching credential program, I am very happy that this program embraces diversity. Coming from an anthropological background it is very important to me that a teaching credential program implement the teaching of diversity and multicultural education. The CSUSM mission statement definitely addresses this aspect.