I remember sitting in my advisor’s office during my PhD, wondering who I really am and what I really care about.
It turns out, I care about people. I care about how people learn and what are the best ways of doing it. I care about getting more women and girls in STEM and technology-related fields. But how can I do these things?
I started my career at a software company in northeast Ohio, realizing at one point that I just wanted to learn more and do more. I completed my first masters degree while I was working fulltime (and traveling) and went on to complete my PhD in Educational Psychology. Originally, I thought I wanted to do something with social media, but then realized I really like learning about how technologies can improve learning outcomes. Technology is a part of life, how can I show people that it isn’t a scary thing? My research interests include digital games for learning, the use of immersive technologies in learning, and computational thinking.
I love being involved in many things (maybe… sometimes… too many things). I advise the VEX-U team at Kent State University. I’ve taken students to conferences and tours. I am a board member of the Midwest Robot Combat Association (where I compete regularly with my robot, Marg). I volunteer judge at high school robotics events. I am also a competitive golfer and semi-retired powerlifter. I have a kelpie/cattle dog named Scarlet who always keeps me on my toes. I’m a die-hard sports-lover (Ohio State Buckeyes, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Red Wings, and Detroit Tigers) and you can often find me shouting at a TV during football season.
I’m always open for collaboration in research or anything else! Feel free to contact me via my contact page!