TEACHING
Courses at Macalester College
Fall 2018
Plant Ecophysiology and Lab (BIOL 368)
Spring 2019
The Changing Arctic/Arctic Ecology
Ecology and the Environment and Lab (BIOL 285)
Fall 2018
Plant Ecophysiology and Lab (BIOL 368)
Spring 2019
The Changing Arctic/Arctic Ecology
Ecology and the Environment and Lab (BIOL 285)
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Teaching Experience prior to Fall 2018: Semester in Environmental Science at The Ecosystems Center (2015-2017) For three years, I served as an instructor for the Semester in Environmental Science , is a semester-long research intensive program for upper-level undergraduates. I lead a module on canopy processes and scaling photosynthesis, respiration, and leaf traits. As a part of SES, I've mentored independent student projects, which comprise 1/3 of the semester, and are capped with a presentation. More photos of SES on the blog! |
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Touring restored forests in the Bronx, 2012.
Nature in the City: Exploring NYC's Ecosystems (2012)
In 2012, I was selected as a Summer Teaching Scholar by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University based on an original syllabus I developed on Urban Ecology. While my research background did not cover Urban Ecology, I saw this as an opportunity to learn about a new topic through teaching, and also utilize the wonderful metropolis of New York City as a living laboratory of ecology and environmental science. I organized multiple field trips around the city: bird habitat in Jamaica Bay, restoration projects in Pelham Bay Park, urban planning in Central Park. I invited experts into the classroom to humanize these research pursuits, including a graduate student studying Urban Heat Island impacts on respiratory disease, and a restoration ecologist for the Parks Department of NYC.
I aimed to explicitly teach science process skills, such as hypothesis building, literature searches, and reading primary research articles.Another goal of this course was to make a deeply collaborative learning environment where student input for assessments, course content, and approaches is valued and included.
In 2012, I was selected as a Summer Teaching Scholar by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University based on an original syllabus I developed on Urban Ecology. While my research background did not cover Urban Ecology, I saw this as an opportunity to learn about a new topic through teaching, and also utilize the wonderful metropolis of New York City as a living laboratory of ecology and environmental science. I organized multiple field trips around the city: bird habitat in Jamaica Bay, restoration projects in Pelham Bay Park, urban planning in Central Park. I invited experts into the classroom to humanize these research pursuits, including a graduate student studying Urban Heat Island impacts on respiratory disease, and a restoration ecologist for the Parks Department of NYC.
I aimed to explicitly teach science process skills, such as hypothesis building, literature searches, and reading primary research articles.Another goal of this course was to make a deeply collaborative learning environment where student input for assessments, course content, and approaches is valued and included.
Ninth graders dissecting pig hearts in 2008. I cannot believe these students are now in their early 20s!
Teaching Assistantships at Columbia University (2009-2011)
Teaching High School Biology in New York City (2006-2008)
- Environmental Biology (2009, 2011)
- Life Systems (2010)
Teaching High School Biology in New York City (2006-2008)
- I joined the New York City Teaching Fellows directly after graduating college. For two years, I taught ninth graders Human Biology (original curriculum) and Regents Living Environment at the Urban Assembly Academy for Government and Law, a small, high-need public school located in the Seward Park campus in the Lower East Side.
- I developed curriculum for Human Biology and Health courses, led an Honors Humanities Seminar for high-performing upperclassmen, developed a behavior-based incentive program,
- During these years, after work and through the summer, I took courses at City College of New York and earned a Masters in Education with a focus on Secondary Science Education.
- Prior to starting at the Urban Assembly Academy for Government and Law, I worked as a student teacher at Wadleigh Secondary School in Math and Earth Science classes in Harlem.
MENTORING
Planting Science
I am a scientist mentor for Planting Science, an online learning community that links classrooms with plant scientists to work on experiment development and inquiry. Each semester I help guide a team students in middle and high school classrooms from around the US. In 2017, I applied and was accepted to become a participant in the NSF funded Digging Deeper program that brings high school teachers and plant scientists together to strengthen the program's modules on photosynthesis.
RESEARCH MENTORING
I am a scientist mentor for Planting Science, an online learning community that links classrooms with plant scientists to work on experiment development and inquiry. Each semester I help guide a team students in middle and high school classrooms from around the US. In 2017, I applied and was accepted to become a participant in the NSF funded Digging Deeper program that brings high school teachers and plant scientists together to strengthen the program's modules on photosynthesis.
RESEARCH MENTORING
- I've mentored and advised undergraduate students during field campaigns in Massachusetts, Arctic Alaska, Minnesota, New York, and Sweden.
- As a graduate student, I involved high school students and Barnard undergraduates in my research endeavors on Arabidopsis thaliana ecotypes and gas exchange.
Enjoying the fruits of Ely, MN with Nur after a few weeks of gas exchange!
Field work on the North Slope of Alaska, 2010.
LiCor City, New York, 2013.
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Melissa presenting her independent project for SES, 2015.
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