Students collecting data for species-area curves in Ecology & Coastal Management at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama

Teaching Experience

My main objectives as a teacher are to promote independent thought and to cultivate critical inquiry. An integral part of my teaching is engaging students in research by bringing them into the field and incorporating experimentation in the classroom. This approach stems from my experiences teaching field-based courses in which students conduct, analyze, and present independent research projects. I have found that one of the most inclusive learning environments is in the field. Observing biological concepts in nature promotes collaboration in the classroom while also heightening critical inquiry and solidifying central concepts.

Please find the list of courses that I have taught below.

Instructor. Center for Marine Biodiversity & Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Introduction to Marine Biodiversity and Conservation. 30 students. Field, Lab, Lecture. Summer 2016, 2017.

•  Co-taught field component of course for the Master of Advanced Studies program.
•  Intertidal and subtidal invertebrate identification and field sampling techniques.

Instructor. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama. Courses taught in Spanish.

Statistical Workshop in R. 25 students. Lab, Lecture. Spring, 2011.

• Co-taught short course on computer coding, data analysis, and data interpretation.

Ecology and Coastal Management. 20 students. Field, Lab, Lecture. Fall, 2010

• Co-taught short course on field ecology and facilitated field research projects.

Graduate Student Instructor. University of California, Berkeley.

NSF funded redesign of labs for Introduction to Organismal Biology. 800 students per semester. Lab. Fall, 2012. 

• Worked with a team of educators to develop labs that integrated observations in the field, hypothesis development, and data analysis.

Biology and Geomorphology of Tropical Islands, Moorea. 22 students. Field, Lecture. Fall, 2009.

• Facilitated and advised students on two month long independent research projects.
• Coordinated course logistics and graded final projects and other course material.
• Taught statistics and advised students on statistical analyses for independent projects.

Introduction to Organismal Biology Field Section. 30 students. Field, Lecture, Lab. Fall, 2006.

• Developed course material centered on field research projects pertaining to lectures.
• Facilitated and advised students on six week long group field projects.
• Coordinated course logistics and graded final projects and other course material.

Wildlife Ecology. 20-25 students per section, 4 discussion sections. Discussion, Lab. Spring, 2012.

• Helped instructors develop lectures, discussion sections, and exam materials.
• Taught discussion sections (group activities on primary literature) and GIS labs.
• Advised students on short field projects and graded written assignments and exams.

Introduction to Organismal Biology. 25 students per section, 4 sections. Lab, Discussion. Fall 2005, 2006, 2011, Spring 2010.

• Designed and taught discussion sections; graded quizzes, lab activities, and projects.
• Taught laboratory sections; specifically, wrote and delivered lectures introducing the lab material, tailored lab to specific needs of students,                graded lab materials.

Animal Behavior. 25 students per section, 6 sections. Discussion. Spring 2006, 2007.

• Taught discussion sections (group activities on primary literature).
• Graded short answer exams and other course material.

Teaching Assistant. University of California, Davis.

Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy Laboratory. 23 students. Lab. Fall, 2004.

• Assisted students with animal dissections, exam preparation, and lab material.

Student Mentorship

My experiences in teaching have shown me that it is imperative for academic scientists to connect students to active research. To this end, mentoring undergraduate students in research is an integral part of my teaching experience. Since beginning graduate school, I have mentored 40 students, 30 of which were female and from diverse backgrounds, including African American, Afro-Antillean, Latino, South East Asian, and Middle Eastern. Most of my former mentees continue to study science in some capacity, including as students in veterinary, medical, and graduate schools, and as environmental educators.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography. 2014 – Present.

Current students

• Zandria Acosta. SURF (Scripps Undergraduate Research Fellowship) Student. Current undergraduate student at the University of the Virgin Islands. Computer science major working on object recognition software for coral reef exploration.
• Matt Suiter. Master's Student. Bioinspriation and Design Lab. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Robotics student working on a small underwater robot that will be able to look and sense the environment inside the coral reef matrix.

Former students

• Summer J. Webb. Undergraduate Volunteer and Laboratory Assistant. Conducted independent research in preparation for publication on sea urchin feeding morphology. Co-authored one publication and will be on 2 more publications in preparation. Summer is currently a PhD Student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
• Marina McCowin. Undergraduate Volunteer and Laboratory Assistant. She will be a co-author on 2 publications in preparation. Marina is currently a PhD Student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
• Grace Chan. Undergraduate Volunteer. She will be a co-author on one publication in preparation.
• Annam Raza. Undergraduate Volunteer. She will be a co-author on one publication in preparation.
• Zoe Sebright. Undergraduate Volunteer. She will be a co-author on one publication in preparation.
• Karina Arzuyan. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Marcos Gonzales. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Katie Fogelstrom. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Asis Campos. UC LEEDS summer student. 
• Amanuel Weldemariam. SURF Student.
• Ashley Rankin. Undergraduate Volunteer. 
• Jorge Rivera. SURF Student.
• Andrew Romero. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Sonya Timko. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Sarina Patel. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Anya Byrd. SURF Student.
• Leeann Alferness. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Brandon Young. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Austin Saderup. Undergraduate Volunteer.

University of California, Berkeley 2006 – 2012.

• Samantha Lu. URAP (Undergraduate Research Apprenticeship Program) Student. Co-author on conference abstracts. 
• Julie Hassen. URAP Student. Led team of undergraduate volunteers. 
• Randy Tigue. URAP Student.
• Tiffany Chang. URAP Student.
• Annie Strother. URAP Student.
• Claire Livoja. URAP Student.
• Maria Perez. URAP Student.
• Allison Pickard. URAP Student.
• Danielle Desmet. URAP Student.
• Alana Reese. URAP Student.
• Vy Duong. URAP Student.
• Muniba Mohammed. Work-study student.
• Eric Campos. Conducted independent research project. 

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and The University of  Panama. 2011.

• Lovely Alvear. STRI Intern. 
• Eudocia Rodriguez. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Nayara Rodriguez. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Gina Ruíz. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Roxana Martínez. Undergraduate Volunteer.
• Yarlenis Julio. Undergraduate Volunteer.