Education & Teaching    

Mrs. Braibish (Miz B) developed her passion for teaching while serving in the U.S. Navy.  As a sailor on board the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (AVT-16), she participated in the 'Partners in Education' program where she tutored inner-city youth.  There she realized that she was able to make a difference in the lives of kids and decided that she would use her military educational benefits to pursue a teaching career. While involved with the program she was honored to be selected as The Sailor of the Year and awarded the Navy Achievement Medal. 

Upon her discharge from the Navy she attended Southern Oregon University where she received a BA (Bachelor's of Arts) in theatre with a minor in communication.  She also studied classical theatre as a foreign exchange student in Winchester, England. Following her undergraduate degree she studied speech and drama education at Central Missouri State University, and then moved to the University of Louisville in Kentucky where she received an MFA (Masters of Fine Arts) in theatre arts- acting.

Following her husband, an officer in the U.S. Air Force, Miz B spent the next few years traveling throughout the United States teaching speech and theatre at different colleges and universities.  She also started several youth theatre programs and conducted seminars in stage make-up, Shakespeare. and auditioning.  In 2001 Miz B and her family moved to Yokota Air Base just outside of Tokyo, Japan where she taught theatre at Yokota High School and coached the Far East Speech and Drama Team for 2 1/2 years.  She was also the president and artistic director of the Yokota Players, a non-profit theatre company on base.

In 2004 Miz B and her family returned to the States and decided to make Oregon their home.  Since coming to Oregon, Miz B has taught at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, guest lectured at Corban College, been an artist in residence for the Salem Arts Association, and directed and performed in a professional comedy improvisation troupe through Salem Center Stage among other pursuits.   After discovering that the Oregon Board of Education no longer recognized speech as a secondary endorsement area, she decided to get her MAT (Masters of Art in Teaching) from Western Oregon University and add a teaching endorsement in Language Arts to her lengthy theatre and speech resume.

In the Fall of 2008 Miz B took over as the theatre program director for Corvallis High School and she was more than honored to have been added to such an amazing program.  In addition to a very active performance schedule, she has started programs in community outreach, student works, a summer theatre program and educational travel.  Additionally she teaches in the graduate school at Western Oregon University and at Linn Benton Community College.  She also teaches at various summer programs including OSU's Outside The Box and Corban College's summer drama intensive.

Link to Miz B's Teaching Resume (CV)

Miz B's Teaching Philosophy

Miz B's Classroom Management Philosophy

Directing, Acting & Writing

An accomplished director, actress and playwright, Miz B has directed numerous plays and musicals, four of which she also wrote.  Known for her high energy productions, Miz B enjoys directing both small and large casts and has done productions with as few as two and as many as one hundred and twenty cast members.  In both 2001 and 2002 her drama team from Yokota High School in Fussa-shi Japan took home gold medals for their performances and in 2002 earned a place in the record books of the Far East Speech and Drama Festival as having the most talked about play in the history of the competition (The History of Tom Jones.)

In addition to her directing credits, Miz B has also trained and worked as a professional stage actress. With many professional acting roles and more than one hundred regional and community plays under her belt, Miz B is more than comfortable on the stage.  She has performed in numerous genres of theatre from classical to musical comedy.  In addition to her stage time she has also worked in front of and behind the camera on television commercials, music videos, and training films as an actress, make-up artist and casting director.  

(North Salem High School theatre students performing one of Miz B's original works, Sincerely Yours)

Link to Miz B's Directing Resume

Link to Miz B's Acting Resume

Link to Miz B's Technical Theatre Resume