Meet Ms. McKinley   

I grew up in DeWitt, Michigan and was very active in high school. I was in competitive cheerleading, track, choir, and was in several school plays as well. I was Valedictorian of my high school, and always made education a priority in my life as it opens doors for you in the future.  I graduated from the Honors College and the College of Education at Michigan State University with a major in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. I have been teaching science at Mattawan High School since 2008, and taught science at other schools previous to coming to Mattawan. While at MSU I was on the Equestrian Team and traveled to different states to compete.

I am passionate about the environment and animals. I love horse-back riding, hiking, downhill skiing, scuba diving, kayaking, mountain biking and traveling to the far corners of the world. I have been to Kauii, Hawaii, Alaska, Switzerland and the Caribbean. I have a cat and a leopard gecko. Just a note about leopard geckos, they can live for 15 years in captivity, so don't get one unless you really want it!!  I did a study abroad through MSU in Switzerland and spent three weeks camping and hiking the Swiss Alps. It was an amazing experience and I encourage students to take advantage of any study abroad opportunities they may have. I also worked at Dow Corning in a chemistry lab for a summer as part of the "New Era Teacher" program to give teachers the opportunity to experience the industry side of science and get real world experiences related to science. I am currently working on a master's degree in Biology from Michigan State University. I love science and look forward to sharing my passion with you!

Ecology Lab at MSU

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive."                                         ~Howard Thurman

MSU Switzerland Study Abroad

Below are pictures from my trip.

That's me hiking down Mt. Rigi, Switzerland.

This is me in Zermatt. The white mountain peak in
the background is the Matterhorn.

Mount Schilthorn, Switzerland

Schilthorn trail - quite scary
We hiked down the entire mountain from an elevation
of 10,000 ft.back to our camp at 2,000 ft.

MSU Study Abroad Group

One day while we were shopping in Zermatt we heard the ringing of bells
in the distance. To our suprise, a herd of goats was coming through town.ro

ugh

Sunset in Swiss National Park

n!