My name is Julie Marie Contreras and I am twenty-three years old. I was born in
Orange County, California. My father was in the military and was stationed at
a base there. My family moved to Yuma, Arizona about eleven years ago and that
is where they still reside. My family consists of my parents and my two brothers.
After I graduated from high school I began working at Behavioral Health Services
here in Yuma. I enjoyed my work there and gain a lot of experience working with
children. My position was Youth Facilitator and I worked in many different elementary
schools around town. I facilitated groups with children who had emotional and
behavioral problems. The students were referred to the program by their general
education teacher. I helped with the creation of the curriculum for this program
and others. I also worked with underprivileged children in afterschool programs.
I spent three years all together at BHS and decided to leave with the notion that
I would be a special education teacher. After deciding that I wanted to go back
to school full time I left Yuma for Tucson to attend the University of Arizona.
That was a great experience and I loved the school. After being away for a year
I research education programs throughout the state and decided that going to NAU
in Yuma would be the best financial decision for me. It was hard but I returned
home and began NAU with a focus of being a special education teacher. I work full
time at Gowan Company which is an Agricultural Chemical Company. I really enjoy
my job and work with an excellent group of people. My hobbies include anything
active such as bike riding, hiking, mountain climbing and running. I love to travel
and I enjoy spending my weekends at music festivals.