UPM Bios
Undergraduate Peer Mentors
Spring 2013
Cathy Bean
Howdy y'all! My name is Cathy Bean, and I am a senior Elementary Education major with an emphasis in reading. This is my second semester as a UPM, and I am so excited to serve Dr. Douglass's Reading 461 students.
I am from San Antonio and have 4 wonderful nieces and nephews I get to visit on each trip home. I have recently fallen in love with Bikram yoga and have 3 big passions including: politics, helping children, and the people of East Africa. I hope to incorporate each of these passions into my future classroom. My fun facts include: I have kissed a giraffe, I speak Swahili, I have worked on multiple campaigns, and I have spent a cumulative of 7 months in Tanzania and Kenya.
Jennifer Blackman
Howdy! My name is Jennifer Blackman, and I’m an elementary education major from Spring, Texas. I have known since second grade that I want to be a teacher, so I am thrilled to be working towards that goal here at A&M!
This semester I am looking forward to serving in a freshman ministry called Doulos at my church (Grace Bible Church), volunteering in a reading program at Down Syndrome Association of the Brazos Valley, and working as a UPM. This is my first semester to be a UPM, but I love reading and writing and am very excited to work with Dr. Cassell in INST 462!
Allison Bretches
Howdy! My name is Allison Bretches, and I am so excited to start my first semester as a UPM! I am a 4-8 Language Arts and Social Studies education major pursuing minors in English and History. I originally grew up in Louisiana, but my family and I moved to the Houston area over 7 years ago.
As part of the Class of 2014, I have had plenty of time to get involved with organizations around campus, such as the Texas State Teachers Association, Association for Childhood Education, and Phi Eta Sigma. In my free time, I enjoy hanging out with friends and watching movies.
I am very excited to work with Ms. Sonnenburg’s RDNG 371 class this semester. Let me know if you need anything!
Bethany Cook
Hi! My name is Bethany Cook, and I am a Bilingual Education major from Tomball, Texas. For the past six summers I have had the incredible opportunity to visit Honduras and volunteer at a boys’ home and elementary school. My major is International Studies with a minor in Spanish.
I love the outdoors, roller coasters, working out, and reading, and my favorite book is Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. I am a youth leader in my church for High School girls, and I love getting to pour my heart and God’s truth into them each week. I am passionate about helping others, and my family is a huge part of my life.
This is my second semester as a UPM, and I am thrilled to be working with Dr. Douglass’s RDNG 461 class. I am excited to be working with such a great team, and I cannot wait to help in any way I can.
Brianne Darling
Howdy! My name is Brianne Darling and I am a junior Elementary Education major from The Woodlands, Texas. I have wanted to pursue a career in education for as long as I can remember, and I am thrilled about the opportunities that have presented themselves throughout my semesters at Texas A&M. I am currently the Co-Chair for Sports For Kids as well as the Fundraising and Political Chair for Texas State Teachers Association. I am also a proud member of Phi Eta Sigma, Association for Childhood Education, and Aggie School Volunteers. I had previously been a Fish Camp counselor for two years in Camp Morehead and Camp Sheather. In addition to student organizations, I also spend time as a reading tutor for a second grade class and a mentor for a second grade girl at The Boys and Girls Club in Bryan, TX. My passion for service and children is what drives me each and every day. In previous semesters I have taken RDNG 372, RDNG 461, and INST 462, so I know the specifics about many of the writing-intensive courses offered here at Texas A&M. This is my first semester as a UPM, and I am proud to serve Dr. McTigue's RDNG 372 class. I am looking forward to all this semester has to offer!
Laura Ginn
Howdy! My name is Laura Ginn, and I am a junior Middle Grades Math/Science Education Major whose hometown is right here in Aggieland. Even though I grew up immersed in Texas A&M’s unique culture, I will actually be the first Aggie—and the first teacher—in my family. I am excited to get to know and work with everyone in Dr. Wiese’s Reading 371 class during my first semester as a UPM! Writing is one of my passions and I hope to help students reach their writing goals in any way I can. When not working with middle school students or learning how to better teach them, I also enjoy reading, cooking, and autocrossing (racing cars through obstacle courses).
Leslie Harris
Howdy! My name is Leslie Harris and I am a Junior Middle Grades Education Major with a focus in Language Arts and Social Studies from Temple, TX. My mom, dad, sister, and sister-in-law are all teachers, so I have wanted to be one since I was a little girl! My hope is to teach middle school English. When I am not in class, I enjoy hanging out with my roommates, drinking coffee, cooking, working out, and watching movies. This is my first semester as a UPM, but I am so excited to serve in any way I can!
Rebekah Hildebrandt
Howdy! My name is Rebekah Hildebrandt, and I am from Spring, Texas. I chose to be an Elementary Education major because I love working with children and being a good role model for them. I have been a member of the Century Singers, a mixed choral group here at A&M, for four semesters. Along with singing, I enjoy photography, spending time with my family, playing piano, and volunteering for children’s programs at my church. This is my first semester as a UPM, and I am very excited about working with one of Dr. Douglass’s RDNG 461 classes! I am looking forward to all this semester has in store for me, and I hope that I will be able to help as many fellow Aggies as I can!
Amy Klingemann
Howdy! My name is Amy Klingemann and I am a sophomore middle grades English/social studies education major. This will be my second semester as a UPM and can’t wait to see what the semester holds! I am from Buda, Texas which is a small town on the outskirts of Austin. I have wanted to be a teacher since I was in second grade, and I have a passion for working with elementary kids. I love to keep busy with work and school, but when I do have free time I enjoy reading and scrapbooking. I am really looking forward to working with Dr. Cassell's INST 462 class this semester!
Kirstin Lawson
Howdy! My name is Kirstin Lawson. I am a senior Elementary Education major. I am from Grapevine, Texas. I have wonderful parents, two ornery brothers, and three loving dogs.
I have always dreamed of being an Aggie. I actually began my college career at Texas A&M Galveston as a Marine Biology major. After two years, I decided to change my major and move to College Station—I have not looked back since! When I am not in school, I love to swim, play with my dogs, curl up to read a book, and spend time with my family and friends. I can’t forget, watching some fightin’ Texas Aggie Football! Whoop!
This is my first year as a UPM. I will be a UPM for Mrs. Scott’s Reading 372 class, and I cannot wait to get started!
Heather Luedeker
Howdy! My name is Heather Luedeker. I am a senior Elementary Education major with a reading emphasis. Texas A&M and Education are in my blood! I followed in my Dad’s footsteps not only in coming to Texas A&M, but also in becoming an Education major. Ever since a young age I have known that I wanted to be a teacher and inspire students the same way my many amazing teachers inspired me! I love reading, and my guilty pleasure is watching reality TV (especially The Bachelor and The Bachelorette). This is my first semester working as a UPM, and I am ecstatic about working with Dr. McTigue and her RDNG 372 class this semester!
Kelsie McKenzie
Howdy! My name is Kelsie McKenzie and I am a junior Elementary Education major from Kerrville, Texas. I enjoy reading, writing, and running and love to spend my time each summer as a camp counselor at my favorite place: Laity Lodge Youth Camp. It is my dream to be a Kindergarten teacher and to teach English in another country. I love Aggie football and the traditions at A&M!
Abbie Middleton
Howdy! My name is Abbie Middleton. I'm a senior Bilingual Education major with minors in Spanish and Creative Studies from North Richland Hills (a suburb of Ft. Worth), TX. I've wanted to be an Aggie teacher since I was nine years old. I'm proud to be a third generation Aggie, and I can't wait to work with bilingual kids when I graduate. In my spare time I like to travel, read, bake, go to concerts, and watch Texas Rangers baseball. Most importantly, I love the Lord and enjoy serving Him. I have a heart for Mexico and spend as much time as I can there in the summertime. This is my third semester as a UPM, and I can't wait to work with Dr. Wiese and her class in RDNG 371!
Natalie Reed
Howdy! My name is Natalie Reed, and I’m a proud member of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Class of 2013, as well as a third generation Aggie. I’m a middle grades History/Language Arts Education major from Dallas, TX. I love God, A&M, working with kids, laughing, football games, and traveling. I enjoy spending quality time with my friends and family, and playing with my mastiff puppy. After graduation, I would love to teach middle school English. I’m passionate about life and can’t wait to see where this ever-changing world leads me. This is my third semester as a UPM, and I couldn’t be more excited to be working with Dr. Garver’s INST 462 class.
Chelsye Rich
Howdy! My name is Chelsye Rich. The saying, “Once an Aggie, always an Aggie” rings very true for me. I was born and raised in northern Utah, specifically Logan, home to Utah State University…also home of the Aggies! I completed my first ever semester of college at Utah State, moved to Texas in 2007, transferred to Blinn and then ultimately to Texas A&M! I am a Middle Grades Language Arts/Social Studies major with a graduation date set for December 2013. When I am able to break away from school work I enjoy spending time outdoors or scrapbooking.
Michael Roland
Howdy! My name is Michael Roland, and I am a junior Middle Grades Language Arts and Social Studies major from Sugar Land, Texas. I am the third Aggie in my family. In my free time I enjoy reading, spending time with friends, and watching movies. After graduating in 2013, I hope to teach either Texas History or U.S. History in my hometown of Sugar Land. This will be my first semester working as an Undergraduate Peer Mentor, and I am very excited to work with Dr. Cassell's INST 462 class.
Cary Ward
Howdy! My name is Cary Ward and I’m a senior English major with teacher certification from San Antonio, Texas. My dream is to teach kindergarten; I would love to teach in the school district I grew up in, but as long as I’m teaching I know I’ll be happy. I love reading and writing, and I’m a grammar freak! In my three years at Texas A&M, I have loved getting involved. I’ve been a part of Delta Gamma, Carpool, Hosts, and the freshman leadership organization, MSC Fish. I’ve been a Fish Camp counselor for three years, and I am now a co-chair for this awesome organization; I'll be a busy girl this semester! This is my second semester as a UPM, and I couldn't be more excited!
