Personal Statement

Hello! I have been teaching Biology, Human Anatomy, Human Physiology (and combined Human Anatomy & Physiology), Medical Histology, and Medical Gross Anatomy courses at the college, university, and medical school level for the last 25 years. My favorite part of teaching is spreading my enthusiasm for these subjects with students to help students to achieve their goals. I would love to help you achieve your goals, whether you are a high school student needing help with biology or chemistry courses, a college student struggling with A&P, a medical student struggling with medical gross anatomy, or a student looking for advice on college or professional school applications or wanting someone who has served on admissions committees critique your application and/or personal statement. These are the areas in which I excel based on my vast experience in higher education and the medical field.

I received my BA in Integrative Biology and MA in Human Biodynamics from the University of California, Berkeley. It was there that I discovered my passion for teaching. Thus, I left research to pursue my dream of becoming a teacher/scholar of anatomy and physiology and teach full time. I taught at a community college for 11 years (general biology, human anatomy, human physiology, and exercise physiology). While doing this, I also earned my Ph.D. in Neurobiology and Anatomy from the University of Utah School of Medicine, where I also taught medical histology and medical gross anatomy. While pursuing my Ph.D. I authored two textbooks in Human Anatomy & Physiology, which are published by McGraw-Hill Education. Thus, I literally wrote the book! I also performed all of the cadaver dissections and photos in the book, as dissection and photography are also big passions of mine.

After I graduated from the University of Utah School of Medicine, I took a job at an Osteopathic Medical School where I served as the course director for the Medical Histology and Medical Gross Anatomy courses for two years, and was the Director of the Human Gift Registry for nearly 5 years. I eventually returned to teaching at the undergraduate level because that is where my true passion lies and where I feel I can make the biggest difference in a students career. This is also the audience for which I write my books, and I dont want to get too far away from that audience as I continue to produce new and innovative teaching materials, tutor students, and the like.

在我的业余时间,我有一些我的爱好enjoy. My two favorites are mountain biking and photography. While my specialty is biomedical photography, I am also a semi-professional landscape and wildlife photographer, with a particular interest in bird photography. I also make unique anatomy-themed jewelry that I sell locally and on Etsy. I've been a cyclist since my freshman year in college, where I helped lead the UC Berkeley Cycling Team to win both regional and national road racing titles. My favorite type of bike racing (by far) is cyclocross. I find that I truly love the challenges cyclocross racing presents, making each race simply a race against myself. Nowadays I don't race, but I do ride regularly, both road and mountain biking. Most recently I've developed an interest in the anatomical basis of yoga practice. I'm excited to see where this new adventure will take me!

I would be delighted and honored to have you as a student. I understand that not all students and tutors are a good fit, so if at any time you find that something isnt working for you, please let me know and we will make changes with our style or try and fit you with someone that more closely matches your learning style.

Thank you for reading my statement. I look forward to meeting you soon!