Ashley Carmichael

Background

About Ashley Carmichael

When I was five years old, I returned from my first day of school ecstatic because I truly believed that going to school for even one day would immediately result in the ability to read whatever I wanted. I distinctly remember flying through the house and grabbing the first book off the shelf to show my mom what I was sure would be my newfound ability. Discovering that I could not, in fact, magically read didn’t crush me the way one might think though. Instead, it jumpstarted my life-long passion for learning. Thirty years later I am still pursuing new abilities through new and exciting educational avenues. I am an MEd graduate student at USC-Columbia in the Learning Design and Technologies program. With my Learning Design and Technologies degree I am able to take my passion for learning and transform it to accessible and adaptable experiences for others and, as Socrates put it, ‘kindle the flame’ of inquiry rather than simply ‘fill the vessel’ with facts. My passion for learning extends into all areas of my life. I am an active volunteer at my church where I put my technology skills to work by helping run the Online Campus. During the week I teach Bible study techniques in a small group. Taking this even further I am working with church leadership to establish a mentoring program called the Discipleship Experience for young leaders for which I am also developing and designing a curriculum. I have even self-published three novels, with a fourth to be released later this year. For the past fifteen years I’ve been an educator, with experience teaching all levels of English. I am an avid bibliophile, anglophile, and logophile, all of which transfer to my passion for teaching and learning. I have written curriculum and pacing guides for two different counties, and even been appointed to a number of leadership roles because of my energy and passion for pushing others to learn and grow. For the past two years I have been out of the traditional classroom, but still teaching and learning as a Technology Integration Specialist. It's my job to help administrators, teachers, and students to integrate technology into every level of instruction through the implementation of technology programs. By assisting with blended learning and providing training for our teachers, I am able to help our schools be more successful in elevating student engagement and learning. Every day I get to extend this knowledge to teachers throughout the district, which impacts hundreds of students and their learning.