FIYou: Martha M. Barantovich ’91, MS ’94, Ed.D. ’06


Name: Martha M. Barantovich ’91, MS ’94, Ed.D. ’06

Hometown: Miami, Fla.

Job Title/Department: Instructor, Department of Leadership and Professional Studies in the College of Education

Campus: Modesto A. Maidique Campus

In a nutshell: I teach undergraduates about the foundations of education and get them to ask questions.

Number of years at FIU: 6

What do you enjoy most about your job?

What don’t I love about my job? I have the best job in the whole wide world!

What do you think faculty/staff and students should know about your department? What about FIU – how is the university “Worlds Ahead”?

My department is full of amazingly knowledgeable individuals who challenge one another and the students in the College of Education. I believe FIU is Worlds Ahead in that we have taken the idea of university education and pushed it beyond the typical experience for students. We are that university that isn’t happy with status quo and continues to morph and grow with the changing world.

Where is your favorite spot on campus? Why?

My favorite spot on campus is between the Ryder Building and the Green Library. The green grass, the water, the buildings, the trees, the students walking, sitting…it embodies the college experience. There’s lots of energy in the middle of that serenity.

Family snapshot:

It’s my husband and my two cats.

Word that best describes you: Spunky.

First paying job: Customer service representative at JByrons.

Favorite TV show: Castle.

What is playing on your iPod?

What isn’t playing on my iPod? I’m a yoga teacher as well, so I have everything from Ram Das to Miles Davis to Linkin Park to Eminem to the Taize Community Choir.

Read any good books lately?

Yep! David Baldacci’s Zero Day and The Sixth Man, and I’m currently reading Girl Land by Caitlin Flanagan.

Your proudest accomplishment:

Every time I look at my diploma, I get teary and goose bumps.

What do you do when you are not working at FIU?

I practice yoga, teach yoga, run, spend time with my beloved, read, cook and breathe deeply.