Department Directory

Summary of Expertise

I earned his BS in Earth Systems - Science & Policy from CSU Monterey Bay and MS in Organismal Biology & Ecology from San Jose State University. I also come to UCSC with several years of experience as an undergraduate science educator, consulting biologist, and educational designer working in collaboration with agency managers, researchers, educators, and the public.  I have been actively involved in the propagation, restoration, and monitoring of protected plant species in the California central coast region.  As an adjunct faculty member at CSU Monterey Bay, I have utilized the local environment as a context for the teaching and learning of ecology and statistics. 

Research Interests

I am committed to pursuing research that will deepen my understanding of plant community recovery following disturbance events in mediterranean plant communities of California with a special focus on the role of seedling recruitment following canopy loss associated with pathogenic fungi and oomycetes.  As a member of Dr. Gilbert’s lab, I plans to conduct research that addresses how the combined factors of plant host spatial dynamics and phylogenetic distances affect which woody species are able to recruit and persist following pathogen related mortality and canopy loss of overstory hardwoods.

Honors, Awards and Grants

• National Science Foundation - Graduate Research Fellowship 
• UC Regent's Fellowship

Teaching Interests

• Statistics 
• Ecology
• Science Education