Professional Bio

I came to the ISE field by volunteering at the Austin Children's Museum while working at a local engineering firm. I felt a career in ISE calling to me, so I left my engineering position to lead school tours at local ISE institutions. Several years and a Master's in Science Ed later, I am back at the Children's Museum as Science Content Developer.


In my current position at ACM I develop science content for our programs and permanent and feature exhibits. It's been my great pleasure to work on the Tinkerer's Workshop exhibit, supplemental science components for Play it By Ear, and All Systems Go, scheduled to open September 2008. The engineering degree still comes in handy now and then.


This year I was fortunate enough to be chosen for the CAISE Fellowship, and travelled to the PI summit in DC to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible from the best in the field. As a CAISE Fellow, I will be working towards submitting a project proposal to NSF at the end of one year.


My project is professional development aimed at increasing children’s museums and other ISE institutions' capacity to communicate the nature, philosophy, & processes of science to the public. ISE institutions have the potential to be powerful communicators of the nature and importance of science, but few studies have examined ISE educators' understanding of the nature of science and their impact on audience perceptions. Through a series of professional development workshops, this project would enable ISE educators to accurately and confidently portray the nature and importance of science to their audiences, and inform the ISE field about the efficacy of such a professional development effort.

Expertise & Interest Descriptors

public understanding of the nature of science, professional development, engaging girls in STEM, tinkering

Planned Conference Participation

Attending :: ISE PI Summit 2008
25 - 26 July 2008