Faculty

I enjoy teaching a variety of courses for both majors and non-majors. Of particular importance to me is cultivating an inclusive and welcoming classroom environment. I engage students using active learning techniques proven to support student learning best, promote inclusion, and make physics fun!

I also use alternative grading practices in all my courses. Alternative grading encourages a growth mindset by allowing students to practice without penalty and retake assessments when extra time is needed to understand the material fully. Anecdotal evidence shows that students appreciate the shift in focus to authentic learning.

I am dedicated to improving the student experience and promoting an inclusive and welcoming department community through a focus on equity and inclusion. Recent highlights of my work in this area include:

• National Science Foundation S-STEM Award (2019 - present)
  • The S-STEM Scholars Program at Ithaca College provides scholarships and programming to support the success of high-achieving, low-income students majoring in physics, computer science, and mathematics. As the principal investigator, I manage all S-STEM activities.
• Department Coordinator for Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (2024 - present)
  • As the EIB Coordinator, I actively solicit ideas from the physics and astronomy department community that promote equity, inclusion, and belonging and coordinate all new and ongoing EIB initiatives. I also stay current on information regarding campus EIB resources and bias reporting.
• APS Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Fellow (2022-2023)
  • As an APS EDI Fellow, I was trained to facilitate classroom EDI conversations. I also worked with the other fellows, a curriculum development team, and critical conversation specialists to develop a workshop to train physics educators interested in building their confidence and capacity to engage in EDI work.
• Local Organizing Committee Co-chair for January 2023 Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (2022-2023)
  • The Conferences for Undergraduate Women and Gender Minorities in Physics (CU*iP) are a consortium of regional conferences held at select colleges nationwide and are sponsored by the American Physical Society. CUWiPs are professional research conferences that also emphasize discussions of the experiences of women in physics and provide information about career and graduate school opportunities. Cornell and Ithaca College will co-host a CUWiP in January 2023 with events held on both campuses.
• Chair of department Anti-racism and Inclusion Action Team (2020-2022)
  • The Department of Physics Anti-racism and Inclusion Action Team was convened in the fall of 2020 as a diverse team of students and faculty. Our first charge was to develop an anti-racism and inclusion action plan, which includes a list of over 40 unique action items our department can take to become anti-racist and fully inclusive of all members.