Teaching
Teaching & Mentorship Philosophy
I teach to prepare students for critical, creative, and curious evaluation of the world they inhabit, whether they become ecologists or not.
Ecologists have long integrated empirical expertise with theory to explore complex problems. Increasingly, in addition to attaining expert-level ecosystem-specific knowledge, ecologists and marine biologists are being asked to engage with sophisticated data structures, quantitative approaches, and computational problems. Such a diversity of required skills can be daunting for students. My approach to teaching ecology cultivates fundamental content expertise and promotes student capacity to adapt to the rapidly changing face of ecology by modeling the practice of scientific inquiry, problem-solving, and collaboration.
Further, students are often drawn to science with a desire to solve big problems, but then told throughout their education that engaging with societal problems must wait until late in their scientific career. Given the urgent societal and environmental problems we face on a global scale, such student motivations must be centered through the prioritization of scientific communication training and engagement with users outside of academia. Overall, my goal is to foster individual student strengths and potential, and especially lift up and engage with those who do not see themselves as scientists.
Ecologists have long integrated empirical expertise with theory to explore complex problems. Increasingly, in addition to attaining expert-level ecosystem-specific knowledge, ecologists and marine biologists are being asked to engage with sophisticated data structures, quantitative approaches, and computational problems. Such a diversity of required skills can be daunting for students. My approach to teaching ecology cultivates fundamental content expertise and promotes student capacity to adapt to the rapidly changing face of ecology by modeling the practice of scientific inquiry, problem-solving, and collaboration.
Further, students are often drawn to science with a desire to solve big problems, but then told throughout their education that engaging with societal problems must wait until late in their scientific career. Given the urgent societal and environmental problems we face on a global scale, such student motivations must be centered through the prioritization of scientific communication training and engagement with users outside of academia. Overall, my goal is to foster individual student strengths and potential, and especially lift up and engage with those who do not see themselves as scientists.
Teaching & Mentorship Experience
Instructor
Marine Biology & Ecology: Seaweeds (lab & field, upper-division majors), Oregon State University, 2017, syllabus
Teaching Assistant
Marine Biology & Ecology: Marine Invertebrates & Independent Research Projects, Oregon State University, 2011-2012
Introductory Biology (lab, non-majors), Oregon State University, 2012
Principles of Biology (lab, majors), Oregon State University, 2010-2011
Ecology & Evolution (lab, majors), University of Chicago, 2009
Ecology (grader), Oregon State University, 2012, 2014-2016
Additional Experience
Guest lectures, Oregon State University: Marine Biology & Ecology (2013-2016), Ecology (2014), Marine Ecology (2015)
Outreach teaching:
Student mentoring: mentored undergraduate students at Oregon State University to establish independent field experiments, to conduct, analyze & present independent laboratory research, write grants (2012-2015); recently & currently participate in several one-on-one mentoring programs aimed at facilitating the success of underrepresented groups in science (e.g., Ecological Society of America SEEDS, EEB Mentor Match, University of Chicago Women's Athletic Association Alumni Mentoring Programs)
Marine Biology & Ecology: Seaweeds (lab & field, upper-division majors), Oregon State University, 2017, syllabus
Teaching Assistant
Marine Biology & Ecology: Marine Invertebrates & Independent Research Projects, Oregon State University, 2011-2012
Introductory Biology (lab, non-majors), Oregon State University, 2012
Principles of Biology (lab, majors), Oregon State University, 2010-2011
Ecology & Evolution (lab, majors), University of Chicago, 2009
Ecology (grader), Oregon State University, 2012, 2014-2016
Additional Experience
Guest lectures, Oregon State University: Marine Biology & Ecology (2013-2016), Ecology (2014), Marine Ecology (2015)
Outreach teaching:
- Public lecture, East Bay Taste of Science Festival (2018)
- Real Scientists host (2018)
- Public lecture, Corvallis Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Oregon (2015)
- Day of coastal climate change lectures in Tillamook High School science classes, Tillamook Oregon (2012)
- Public outreach booth & Family Science Days at the American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting, Vancouver BC (2012)
- Oregon State University's Winter Wonderings Grade School Program (2012)
- Oregon State University's Darwin's Legacy annual event for rural high school students (2011-2012)
Student mentoring: mentored undergraduate students at Oregon State University to establish independent field experiments, to conduct, analyze & present independent laboratory research, write grants (2012-2015); recently & currently participate in several one-on-one mentoring programs aimed at facilitating the success of underrepresented groups in science (e.g., Ecological Society of America SEEDS, EEB Mentor Match, University of Chicago Women's Athletic Association Alumni Mentoring Programs)
