She received her B.S. in Early Childhood Education from UNC Greensboro and her M.Ed. in Elementary Education from UNC Wilmington. Rene has many years teaching experience in kindergarten and first grade, and has also had special training in math education through the North Carolina TEAM (Teaching Excellence and Mathematics) Project. She has presented many workshops across the state, and has been a part-time lecturer at UNCW. She recently participated in a statewide professional leadership project, the Power of Kindergarten. She is National Board Certified.

In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, drawing, reading and watching birds. Rene especially enjoys sharing and nurturing her students’ sense of wonder.