Teaching

Teaching Philosophy

My teaching philosophy is to focus on driving intellectual engagement with a variety of hands-on teaching approaches that lead students to apply the ideas that they are learning in the classroom. Students need strong foundations in core theories, while connecting those foundations to practical applications. I use this approach across levels to motivate my students to realize their full potential. 
My primary goal in graduate education is to impart the necessary theoretical and methodological acumen to my students for them to become scholars in their own right. Graduate education is an opportunity to ground oneself in existing tenets of a domain of study, but also to explore the boundaries of a discipline. At the undergraduate level, I employ a diverse set of teaching methods to engage students. Activities include field experiences, simulations, and the use of interactive technology to enhance the classroom setting. 

Mentorship

Beyond my work in the classroom, I advise and mentor graduate and undergraduate students in a number of different capacities. In general, I believe in mentoring through engagement. Each student who works with me is expected to work directly with me on some aspect of my ongoing research. In turn, I mentor students through coaching, actively working together on critical research questions, and by providing ongoing feedback on writing to foster intellectual development.  In part, this means that I spend significant time working with both undergraduate and graduate students on publications, and helping them to navigate the writing process from draft to final document. 

Sample Syllabi