Outreach and Education

This week has been a slow research week, but not uneventful. Instead of being in the lab for the week, I have been preparing outreach materials and I gave an invited talk to college students who are interested in the various fields of marine science and prospective jobs in the marine sciences. I think this is my fourth year giving this invited talk, and I love getting the opportunity to speak to college students about how I ended up in graduate school. It's always fun to take the students through my journey, as it is more unexpected than many of my peers who also present during these sessions.

For context, I went to school to be a biology teacher for grades 6-12. Specifically, I was interested in working with high school students, but at the time, the job market was really tight for teachers. I took a position as a middle school physical sciences teacher (physics and chemistry) for three years, and I really enjoyed the opportunities I had, working with a variety of learners, and even coaching a science olympiad team to states. After three years I moved on to work at the United States Military Academy Preparatory School at West Point, where I taught biology, chemistry, and physics for non-majors (note: this is the best description I have without getting into more details). While I was teaching I was also finishing my Master's degree in biology education, with a specific focus on meta-cognition and how teachers can support student self-reflection and assessment preparation strategies.

I never thought that my career that started in biology education would lead to another high degree (still working on the PhD) in biology and working in marine systems. It has been a wild journey and though it's not always been easy, and I have made tough decisions to future this career path, I enjoy the opportunities provided to me. While for most it doesn't take four degrees to get into the career path that they love or the future they envision, I get to share my story with junior and senior college students who are worried about their lives after college and let them know that it may take extra time for some to find what they are searching for.

On a research note, next week I should be setting up phase one of my pilot experiment: the aquarium and aquarium test experiments, so stay tuned.