About

Before her writing life, Catherine cut her teeth on two decades worth of experience as a speech/language pathologist, educator, and college professor.

 

In rehab and school settings from preschool through high school, she worked alongside countless brave students confronting challenges: developmental delays, medical complications, brain injury, emotional and behavioral problems, hearing loss, communication disorders, neurodiversity, dyslexia and other learning limitations.

 

As an associate professor at Metropolitan State University and Johnson & Wales University, she taught in Teacher Education programs, preparing would-be teachers to meet the needs of classroom students with challenges and disabilities.

 

Catherine grew up on the windswept Kansas plains (with the occasional tornado). After graduating college, she moved to Arizona’s sunny desert and acquired both an M.S. in speech and hearing sciences at ASU and a husband. A move to Colorado, the FRP (final resting place, she asserts), brought with it the joys and dramas of raising three daughters and countless pets. 

 

Along the way, she obtained her M.S. in special education at UCD. Catherine and her Denver family enjoy their year-round playground, the Rocky Mountains.

 

Her Kansas childhood, an early love for books—especially those featuring animals—and her experiences with children and families confronting serious challenges all inform her writing.

 

Catherine is a member of Lighthouse Writers in Denver, and the Rocky Mountain Chapter of SCBWI.