• Ph.D. in progress, Geophysics, University of Alaska Fairbanks
• M.S. Environmental Science, Alaska Pacific University
• B.A. Economics, B.A. Environmental Studies, California State University Sacramento

 

I was originally drawn to Alaska for commercial salmon fishing in Bristol Bay while a undergraduate student in California.  The wildness of Alaska grew on me after multiple backcountry trips before and after each fishing season.  These adventures convinced me that I had to live in Alaska, which resulted in the path of graduate school(s), first earning a Master of Science here at Alaska Pacific University and currently as a Ph.D. student in Geophysics at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. 

 

Of all the ways to gain new knowledge in an educational setting, I subscribe to the method of “learning by doing.”  This philosophy fits well into the active learning style Alaska Pacific University promotes.  I have had the privilege of‘teaching – more appropriately co-learning along side students as we seek further scientific knowledge.  These topics range from studying glaciers, rivers, wetlands, to plant species richness. Only in Alaska can these continue to be investigated in such a pristine setting.

 

I was invited to join the Environmental Science Department in 2003.  Prior to returning to APU, I worked for a non-profit conservation organization providing GIS (Geographical Information System) services to local, statewide, and national conservation organizations. Working for Environmental Systems Research Institute, I completed various GIS projects and conducted GIS trainings.