• Chair of Biology Education
  • Assistant Professor of Biology
School of Arts & Sciences

About Me

I enjoy teaching introductory biology lectures and labs at the University of Mary because it gives me the opportunity to guide students as they apply and expand upon what they are learning in the classroom by performing their own experiments in the laboratory. I am grateful that the University of Mary has the technology and resources needed to allow students to explore a variety of scientific topics, ask creative questions, and design their own hypothesis-driven research.

Why I’m At Mary

I knew I wanted to be an instructor at the University of Mary after visiting campus and seeing how instructors are able to build relationships with their students. Instructors and students collaborate together as an academic family to pursue truth, personal growth, and the formation of a world view that appreciates the interconnectedness of reason and faith.

Expertise

I've enjoyed studying the roles of various repair proteins and their post-translational modification following induced DNA damage within budding yeast. Budding yeast serves as an ideal model organism for gaining a better understanding of how higher eukaryotic cells respond to DNA damage. This type of research also allows students to explore how gene expression can be altered in the laboratory.

Education

PhD (Biochemistry): North Dakota State University, 2023
BS (Elementary Education): Minnesota State University Moorhead, 2006