A graduate of the University of Victoria Teacher Education Program, Barb began her teaching career in School District No. 81 (Fort Nelson),and after starting a family, moved to SD6 (Rocky Mountain), where she has lived and worked since 1998.  She has been a K-7 teacher throughout her career and has always been passionate about literacy learning, particularly in young children.

In 2013, Barb became a full-time District Literacy Support Teacher in SD6. This role was envisioned as a means of providing regular, embedded professional development for teachers; an opportunity for teachers across the District to have a colleague work side-by-side with them and their students to improve literacy learning, in alignment with the goals of the SD6 District Plan.  In addition to providing this learning leadership, Barb provided protocol and procedure training on district reading and writing assessments (K-8), organized/facilitated district book clubs, and provided a variety of other professional learning opportunities for teachers.

Barb has been incredibly busy since accepting her role as the District Vice Principal of Literacy for SD6 in the 2021-22 school year. She has been working with principals, vice principals and teachers on the Ministry of Education Literacy Proficiencies Pilot Project, the development of a Grade 4-9 performance-based reading assessment, and a grade 5 readers initiative which has been informed by a review of achievement data. Barb has also been supporting schools in phonological assessments by reviewing data and adjusting practices district-wide as well as supporting various literacy aspects of school success planning K-12. 

Barb has appreciated working closely with principals and vice principals in her new role, supporting them as they work to improve literacy achievement for all learners in SD6.