Assistant Professor of Biology – Union College (Barbourville, KY)

BIOL 101 – Human Biology

BIOL 102 – Human Biology Lab

BIOL 232 – General Zoology

BIOL 233 – General Botany

BIOL 441 – Ecology

Pedagogical Training

I was a LAMP Fellow for the 2018-2019 academic year. The LAMP program trains graduate students and faculty in active learning techniques; for my fellowship project, I implemented Problem-based Learning in General Ecology. I attended many workshops hosted by the Ellbogen Center for Teaching & Learning during and after my LAMP fellowship.

Visiting Instructor – Northwest College (Powell, WY)

BIOL 1010 – General Biology (2 semesters) –

BIOL 2023 – Biology of Plants & Fungi – I based the course on materials from the faculty member that taught the course previously, but I gave it my own spin of problem-based learning (PBL). I had the students work through a couple of PBL assignments (e.g. food security, GMOs) during the semester, and they presented their own PBL poster at the end of class. The students also designed and carried out experiments with Wisconsin Fast Plants. Click here to view my syllabus.

BIOL 2385 – Research in the Life & Physical Sciences – This was a capstone scientific method and independent research course. I used my experience teaching research methods at Andrews University to develop the course. We discussed the philosophy of science, performed and interpreted fundamental statistical tests, visualized data in graphs, and wrote scientific proposals and papers. Click here to view my syllabus. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the course was reduced and I eliminated most of the R coding portion of the class; we analyzed data in Excel instead.

BOT 2100 – Forest Management – I organized this course around a few texts that are more accessible and engaging than a typical forest ecology or forest management book, and saved half of the class periods for guided discussions among the students. The other half of class periods I used for more traditional lectures. Students wrote essays that integrated the texts and other class content. Click here to view my syllabus, but note that this course was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and we were unable to complete the course as planned.

Instructor of Record – University of Wyoming

ZOO 3400 – General Ecology – 26 students

I developed my course content around topics covered by previous lecturers of this course, but I converted approximately a third of the lectures to problem-based learning activities, where the students applied their ecological knowledge to real-world scenarios.

Click here for my graphic syllabus.

Click here for a description of our PBL activities.

Click here for the description of the end-of-semester poster projects.

For my final LAMP project, I created a poster that explains the PBL activities and explores some of the data from the end-of-semester active learning survey administered to students. Click here to view the poster.

ZOO 3600 – Animal Behavior (1 semester) – 43 students

I developed my course from materials used by previous lecturers of the course, but I integrated more active learning techniques in the classroom. I especially used PollEverywhere to get instant feedback on student comprehension and to allow all students to participate in a stress-free way. Click here to view my syllabus.

Teaching Assistantships – University of Wyoming

LIFE 3050 – Genetics (1 semester) – I revamped the discussion portion of the course with active learning techniques, particularly Problem-based Learning. I led three discussion sections totaling 65 students. Click here for descriptions of our discussion activities.

LIFE 1010 – General Biology (1 semester) – I taught two lab sections of General Biology, totaling 48 students. I presented the lab material, supervised the labs, assisted students outside of lab, graded assignments, and maintained gradebooks.

LIFE 2022 – Animal Biology (1 semester) – I taught two lab sections totaling 41 students. I was responsible for presentation of material, grading article discussions and lab reports, incorporating active learning techniques, and overseeing the lab. I also graded short response questions for the lecture portion of the class.

LIFE 3050 – Genetics (1 semester) – I led two discussion sections, totaling 67 students. I helped students complete their assignments.

ZOO 4350 (3 semesters) – Ornithology – I supervised lab activities for a total of 90 students. I presented material from the University of Wyoming Museum of Vertebrates, wrote and graded quizzes, and supervised the lab. I also gave two guest lectures in the class.

ZOO 4650 – Tropical Ecology of Ecuador – I helped to plan the course, supervised 9 students during a ten-day J-term field course to Ecuador, and facilitated the discussion portion of the course following the trip.

Teaching Assistantships – Andrews University (Berrien Springs, MI)

BIOL 165 – Foundations of Biology (2 semesters) – I supervised 8 students during lab each semester and graded their assignments.

BIOL 251 – Research Methods I (1 semester) – I graded assignments for 35 students and gave three guest lectures.

BIOL 252 – Research Methods II (2 semesters) – I graded homework and tests and maintained the grade sheets for a total of 85 students.

BIOL 348 – General Ecology (2 semesters) – I taught the lab course for a total of 56 students. The first time around, the labs were mostly tour-style; thus, I was responsible for lecturing on the lab material to half of the class. I also developed a quantitative freshwater ecology lab. The next time I taught the course, I added three quantitative field labs to the pre-existing tour-style labs and the freshwater lab. I graded the lab reports resulting from these quantitative labs. I reinstated group projects, so I guided students as they developed a research question and methodology. I was responsible for explaining the material to half of the class during the tour-style labs. I maintained gradesheets for the class and guest lectured for four class periods.

BIOL 453 – Biology Seminar (2 semesters) – I graded assignments for a total of 67 students.

ZOOL 454 – Ornithology – This was a three-week-long short course, including a 10-day birding trip in Michigan and to Point Pelee. I helped plan the trip and gave lectures during the trip. For the on-campus portion of the class, I guided the 7 students through labs and wrote and graded tests.

MATH 141 & 142 – Calculus I & II (2 semesters each) – I graded homework and quizzes for a total of 100 students.

MATH 426 – Mathematical Modeling in Biology (1 semester) – I graded homework for 13 students.