Cara Himmel

Cara Himmel is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and currently lives and works in northern Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. She has been teaching 9th and 10th grade English in Fairfax County Public Schools for the past two years. Cara graduated from Penn State in 2023 with degrees in Secondary Education and English, along with a minor in Psychology. During her final year, she completed an honors thesis focused on using creative writing instruction to support student well-being. Her research explored how instruction can be used to foster safe and inclusive classroom environments.

The MSPE program originally appealed to me because of the unique structure of being an active educator while participating in the program. I’m excited to be able to immediately apply what we learn into my teaching and troubleshoot any issues I face with a group of people with such diverse perspectives!