Teaching Philosophy
First and foremost, to be an effective educator, one must be a good mentor to their students. I have been lucky to have excellent role models in this area, as a professor and as a student. As an undergraduate, I attended a small liberal arts college. Adams State College, in Alamosa, Colorado, affording me an education that involved mentorship from my first year on. There, due to small classroom size and a requirement for advising, I was encouraged to continue in science. I was also given a rare opportunity to assist in the teaching of labs, which not only aided me in my quest to attend graduate school, but gave me a brief glimpse into the world of science education and guided me in my career. Students need such opportunities, and a true mentor sees greatness emerging in their students and will reach out to those students, and encourage them to continue. In graduate school at the University of Arizona I was given many opportunities to mentor both in the classroom and in the lab. I soon found myself emulating my former mentors by advising my students, being supportive of their dreams, tutoring them in science, and attempting to be a role model to them. I was rewarded with admiration from my students, a teaching award, and a few peeks at acceptance letters from graduate and professional schools. I began my quest for a career in education following graduation, and have taught for 11 years, 9 of those years have luckily been at my Alma Mater, Adams State College. I find now, that while I am working to emulate my former mentors, as a woman, I have other important roles. Being a woman in chemistry, I have a rare opportunity to mentor young women and men alike, to prepare them for the changing world of science ahead of them. To this end, I encourage students to find a place for themselves and for their colleagues in science, to embrace diversity while strongly maintaining personal identity, and to challenge the boundaries whether self-imposed, or set by society.