Regardless of one’s background, the curiosity that drives scientific research is within each of us. My mission as an educator is to ignite the desire to learn more about the natural world. I incorporate student-centered activities and promote learning experiences with hands-on opportunities in the lecture, lab, and field. I have been fortunate to mentor students from diverse backgrounds at a variety of institutions; including minority-serving institutions and universities in developing countries. These multicultural opportunities allow me to better understand and meet the needs of all students.

 

Experience

 

Visiting Assistant Professor - Randolph - Macon College

(2017 - Present)

• Foundations of Experimental Biology - two-part, studio-style introductory integrative biology course. 

• Evolution - Sophomore-level lecture course 

• Field Vertebrate Biology - Upper-level major lecture and lab

• Conservation Biology (non-majors lab course)

• Guided Research - Mentored undergraduate students on projects investigating the molecular and morphological variation in fishes from Africa and the United States  

 

Instructor - Southeastern Lousiana University (2014-2015)

• Anatomy and Physiology lectures and labs

• General Biology labs

 

Teaching assistant - Tulane University (2008-2014)

• Ichthyology

• Stream Ecology

• Diversity of Life 

 

Teaching assistant - Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi

• Comparative Anatomy (2007)

 

Facilatator at International Workshops 

 

• Fishbase and Fish Taxonomy Training Session, National Museum of Kenya (*September 23 – 25th, 2016)

 

• Phylogenetics and Biodiversity Informatics Workshop, National Museums of Kenya, (September 24 – 27th 2013)

 

Student Mentoring 

 

• Currently, several undergraduate R-MC undergraduate students are exploring the diversity of African fishes with molecular and morphological techniques. These students have gone on to publish this work, apply for NSF GRFPs, and go onto to pursue graduate education. 

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• Assisted undergraduate students from Makerere University with a project investigating aquatic ecology for a field school at Mpala Research Centre

 

• Trained and mentored undergraduate student participants of the IRES project. Instructed students on field techniques, molecular methods, phylogenetic analyses, museum studies, and morphometric analyses. Students developed honors theses from the project and presented their results at local and national conferences.