• Greetings! I am a 3rd year teacher at Bluebonnet Elementary school. I completed my undergraduate (B.A) and graduate education (M.A.) at top university and top psychological counseling program of Turkey, Bogazici University, Istanbul at that time. Later, I graduated from the UT at Austin, Special Education, Learning Disabilities and  Behavior Disorders doctoral program. In 2005, I received a highly selected award in the US, World Bank, Margeret McNamara Award. This award is given to 6-10 female graduate students coming from developing countries due to their exceptional service record for serving women and children. 

    Previously, I worked as a school counselor in Turkey for 6 years, mainly at Robert College, Turkey, which is known as a highly selected educational institution of Turkey. Later, I worked at the University of Texas at Austin as a Teaching Assistant at the UT Assistive Technology Lab for 5 years teaching pre-service teachers during my doctoral studies. I taught undergraduate Research and Statistics classes at universities, including Texas State, Huston-Tillotson, and Bogazici University. Finally, I have 5 years of teaching experience in Texas working with elementary, middle, and high school students. 

    My main areas of interest are teaching math and social skills instruction. Together with my co-author, Jennifer Sertel, we wrote a book entitled, Peace Starts Within: Activities to Promote Nonviolence intended for students at 8th grade and beyond. The book has been used to teach social and emotional skills in Turkey and Greece for many years. I presented my research at the annual meetings of highly respected research associations such as Council for Exceptional Children, American Educational Research Association, and Council for Learning Disabilities. I contributed to the published research articles on read-aloud and self-compassion as one of the authors. 

    My office hours are between 7:30am and 8.10am Monday through Friday. I am looking forward to working with our wonderful Bluebonnet Elementary School community.   Respectfully, Dr. Kraft