Whether I am modeling problem-solving skills in a quantitative methods course, leading workshops about community-engaged research, or mentoring students at important crossroads in their life decisions, I find a deep sense of purpose in my role as a teacher. I define successful teaching not only by changes in students’ thinking, but the extent to which youth find their learning experiences meaningful and challenging in ways that promote identity development and lasting convictions. As bell hooks puts it, effective teaching allows for “movement against and beyond boundaries,” both internally and externally. In equity-oriented and mutually-constructed spaces, I prioritize creative idealism and authentic relationships in ways that collaboratively embody a microcosm of a just world. I have received a number of accolades for my teaching quality. Over the course of my career, I have taught a wide range of courses at the college and high school levels, spanning disciplines of math, physics, sociology, psychology, global political economy, education, and environmental studies.
“Education either functions as an instrument that is used to facilitate the integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity to it, or it becomes the ‘practice of freedom,’ the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.”