About Myself
If you’re reading this you already know my name is Danielle Pedersen, otherwise it’s an unworldly coincidence that this website and I share the same title. For introduction’s sake, I am a half-Filipino, half-Danish first-generation American daughter of immigrants. I graduated from the University of Florida in 2016 with degrees in linguistics and education. Clever, creative, and communicative are three adjectives that suit me more than comfortably. I approach and interact with the world with an open and curious mindset, always looking for clarity, understanding, and I am forever embracing opportunities to expand my knowledge. Basically, I love learning about the world and all the people in it.
Professionally I have invested myself in several facets of language education: I’ve taught at tiers ranging from middle school through university adult-level, working in topics including but not limited to language arts & grammar, literacy, literature analysis, and conversational English for ESL, amongst many more narrowed and specific subjects.
I spent four years working at the University of Florida (UF) as a Language Assistant for the English Language Institute (ELI); during this time, I composed and taught four unique and engaging lesson plans every week for two classes of about 20 students. These international students were aiming to enter the University of Florida but their acceptance was contingent on passing the language courses taught at the ELI first, in order to ensure fluency and cultural competency. It was in this role that I cultivated my love for and proficiency in adult-education, as well as a passionate interest in international affairs.
After graduating from university I accepted a role as an English teacher for New Beginnings High School in Polk County, Florida. Rather than working primarily with ESL students, in this role I taught all high-school levels of language arts and English literature. After six months, I was promoted to the head of the English department, credited to my tireless work ethic outside of school hours and unfailing focus on providing high quality and engaging lesson plans daily.
From education I transitioned into business, working through a business acumen internship with Frontier Communications and the Tampa Business Centre. The comprehensive internship grew into a leadership position where I worked as a team leader in sales. I utilized the business and technological knowledge and skill set gained at Frontier in my next role working in the research department of Nielsen Ratings as a Panel Relations Specialist. The management at Nielsen put my education background to great use by promoting me to the position of Training Facilitator after I had mastered all the facets of my initial role.
When I left southern Florida to move to Jacksonville it was still the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. I too left my role at Nielsen to enter the private sector as an independent contractor in education, providing my life with the necessary flexibility to change my place of residence based on my life’s needs. At the same time, in working in education once again but as an independent entity, I am able to address the pervasive shortcomings and pitfalls of public education as it currently stands. For more information on my views of public education, please look to related articles on this site.
Through my time working in university, I became thoroughly familiar with exams including but not limited to the TOEFL, IELTS, and GRE examinations. From my time working at the high school level of education I also came to master the intricate ins and outs of the SAT, ACT, IB, and AP examinations. When working with a client in any of the prior mentioned test prep arenas, I provide exclusive and extensive test-prep material to be used in tandem with tutoring sessions, that way there is no need for you to purchase supplemental study materials while working with me.
In addition to standardized exam prep I provide unique and entirely personalized curricula to clients for a wide range of topics and academic enrichment. My clientele can and do request custom tutoring sessions for day-to-day academic assignments that fall under my jurisdiction, previously including sessions to complete analytical and research essays, college and private school application completion, literature analysis and discussion for individual novels, test prep for course-specific topics (for example: an entire unit on Shakespeare history and analysis). I am equipped to assist in any type of academic or professional work that requires a mastery of language and communication, or any knowledge of English (both literature and as a language).
For anyone wishing to see samples of my work, please feel free to peruse the cataloged bits of my portfolio available on this website. Outside of educational work I am a tireless and fastidious editor, transcriptionist, and I offer ghost-writing services and high quality curriculum design work. I encourage anyone whose interest is piqued in contracting my services, please contact me via email.
Personally and passionately I choose to write creatively, and I aim to have a novel of my own published in the near future. It is my goal to contribute to the wide array of literature meant to nourish the creative and sensitive. I enjoy numerous other creative pursuits as well, including origami, painting, and jewelry-making. If I'm neither crafting nor creating something, then I am just as likely to be found playing video games as I am reading - it can't be helped, I love them both.
