After graduating from high school in the East Bay, I worked in the upper elementary classrooms of a small after-school tutoring establishment before attending UC Davis to pursue a degree in chemistry. 

At Davis, my collegiate level science courses helped my passion for science to flourish. However, I always returned to my experience as a tutor and the satisfaction received seeing students succeed. I knew I wanted to work in education once I graduated, so I further developed my ability to communicate knowledge by volunteering as a tutor for classes that I had completed.

When I was growing up, receiving a college education was not something I envisioned for myself. I thought that math and science were for people who were in some way just built differently than me. However, some wonderful teachers both piqued my interest in the sciences and taught me to have confidence in myself. I value opportunities to help my students expand the opportunities available to them and develop their belief in their ability to pursue their goals and their dreams.

Over the years, I have learned to adapt my teaching method to each student. My first goal as a tutor is to eliminate the intimidation factor of new content in the student’s coursework. I know from experience how nerve wracking it can be to see new formulas and symbols that seem to have no intuitive meaning. I’m also sympathetic to the fact that my students may be under intense pressure to perform well academically. I give students confidence in the material, mitigate stress, and empower them to meet their academic pursuits.

Outside of work, I enjoy rock climbing, reading sword and sorcery novels, and learning new scales to improve my guitar and bass playing.