Growing up on a working farm I gained an appreciation for the natural world and a fundamental curiosity about how it worked. This has manifested itself as passion and enthusiasm when I discuss the environment with students. To offer an informative but entertaining lesson plan, I devote time and effort (and obviously some enthusiasm) to create an environment in the classroom that will make students curious and excited about what they learn.  But my enthusiasm can only be part of what gets students involved and invested in a course. During my own struggles in Quantum Mechanics as an undergraduate I learned that students will always be more active and invested if they feel the knowledge from the classroom can be applied to real-world problems.  Therefore, I incorporate my experience as a professional geologist and bring several examples from my consulting experience to emphasize that these concepts and fundamentals of research will be important for their future careers.

Based on my time as an environmental consultant, I believe there are two very important skills that students can practice and improve on for their future. Effective written and oral communication will be key components to success either in academia or a professional career. The utility of the concepts from the classroom can be demonstrated with examples and projects that involved environmental remediation, due diligence or site investigation work. In my classroom I encourage and open and safe environment for students to practice their communication skills.

Courses taught:

CE475 – Water Quality Chemistry

CE 370  – Introduction to Environmental Engineering

CE 578  – Groundwater Remediation

CE 494H – Honors Senior Thesis

CE 592 – DEI in STEM

CE 597 – Isotopes in the Water Energy Nexus