Colene Birchfield

Colene Birchfield joined STEM for the 2022-23 School Year as the High School Counselor.

She graduated from the University of Florida in 1996 with a degree in Music Education (voice). She taught in a school for seven years full-time before becoming a volunteer for another four years.

She has worked (and still works) as a private post-graduate planning consultant. She worked for the University of Michigan Business School in the MBA program, matching students with companies for internship opportunities, event planning and developing websites. She also worked for Fidelity Investments in a similar capacity (event planning, training, and development of databases)

She has taught private voice lessons for 25 years and continues to teach private lessons. She taught High School Choir, Show Choir, Piano, Guitar & Theater, and middle school choir and elementary music. She is a classically trained opera singer (soprano) who has performed in operas by Mozart, Bizet and Humperdinck. She continues to perform as a soloist for churches and private events.

She has two boys, one who was a former STEM student but is now living on his own in Tucson (works for Raytheon), and the other who is a junior at CSU.

In her free time, she enjoys being outside, attending broadway shows, singing, playing piano, and spending time with family and friends.

Some fun facts about Mrs. Birchfield:

• She grew up in the military (having moved 18 times in childhood-college to different states/countries (25 times in my lifetime)), attended high school in Germany, and spent a couple of early years in Korea.
• She testified before Congress in 2008 (and was interviewed on ABC World News) to get a bill passed that would allow epinephrine to be placed in all schools and be carried by students.
• She also participated in Food Allergy Research with the NIH and Duke University/UNC Chapel Hill for 11 years for Milk, Egg & Peanut allergy Oral & SLIT Immunotherapy with her son, Ryan (STEM Grad).

Favorite Starbucks Drink or Snack: Grande Iced or hot Vanilla Latte with 2 extra pumps vanilla (hot in cold months, iced in warm months)

Favorite Snacks: Chips & Salsa, Haribo Gummi Bears, Rold Gold Pretzels

Favorite Places to Eat: White Chocolate Grill, Sierra, La Loma, Mici, Chuys, Jimmy Johns, Chick Fil A

Favorite Drinks: Coke Zero

Favorite Place to Shop: Nordstrom

Hobbies: Singing, Walking, Travel

Favorite Colors: Pink