​I believe all students have the right to professional training and knowledge with the wiggle room to make mistakes. I guide my students through the production process with the skills and experience I have gained while working professionally. I mentor my stage management students by meeting with them once a week to go over paperwork. I help them learn how to best prepare paperwork on a professional union level. I encourage my students to try new things and allow them to learn from mistakes. At some point in their academic career a student will face failure and/or have a hard time grasping a concept. I am there to guide my students through their mistakes and teach them how to grow and learn from them on an individual basis. I create an open, friendly and collaborative classroom in which my students feel free to experiment and be vulnerable in their art. Students need to feel safe and protected while learning to work in a professional theatre environment. I challenge myself every semester to get to know my students on an individual basis. By learning their personalities and nuances, I can help them achieve their personal goals. My students in the past have grown and become professionals in the theatre industry. By helping them find their niche in the industry they have become professional stage managers, scenic painters, scenic designers, graphic designers, lighting designers and sound engineers. The longer I teach, the more I realize my teaching style and philosophy must change with every student I have. I must be flexible and learn as much from my students as they learn from my classes.