I am the Assistant Director of the Center for Faculty Excellence at Purdue University Northwest. I work with the Director to support the development of courses and implementation of instructional practices that promote inclusive excellence in teaching and learning.
 
I hold a Ph.D. from the USF School of Geosciences, specializing in Geoscience Education. I have taught at community and state colleges, a liberal arts college, and a research one university. My research and professional interests focus on aiding in the teaching, learning, and professional development efforts to increase diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in higher education through effective inclusive teaching practices, especially in the STEM fields. I use qualitative methods to study the impacts of different learning environments on a student’s affective domain. My research informs best practices for a variety of experiential learning modes in STEM curriculums. Current projects include: (1) investigating classroom interventions that lead to positive affective gains in a student’s sense of belonging in STEM; (2) developing best practices for field trips to decrease barriers to diversity, equity, and inclusion; (3) creating more accessible field trips, e.g., virtual reality field trips; (4) and facilitating faculty professional development opportunities to increase awareness and use of effective inclusive teaching practices.