I obtained my B.S. in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and my B.S. in Mathematics from Bethel University (Mishawaka, IN).
As an undergraduate at Bethel University, I worked with Dr. Brian Ellis (now located at Lipscomb University) and used a health-rating system to evaluate the usefulness of C. elegans as a model for anthelmintic study. This work resulted in a peer-reviewed publication and conference presentations.
I’ve previously worked as an NSF REU Fellow and research assistant at Notre Dame University with Dr. Joseph O’Tousa where I explored the visual system of two mosquito species, Aedes aegypti and Anopheles gambiae.
And as a summer intern at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, I worked with the Bioengineering group and Dr. Angela Tooker to perform post-fabrication electrochemical analysis of neural interface devices, assessing their relative safety.
Due to a combination of all of my undergraduate research experiences, I wanted to join a program that would specifically train me to integrate my math and biology backgrounds in interdisciplinary research.
The Cell, Molecular, Developmental Biology, and Biophysics (CMDB) program at Johns Hopkins University offers exactly this with comprehensive quantitative biology training and many labs that apply quantitative approaches and modeling to their research. Through rotations and thesis research, I have had the honor to research with leading computational biologists, like my original thesis advisor, James Taylor, and now Rajiv McCoy, following James’s unexpected passing.
I am also involved as a teaching assistant in the CMDB program’s quantitative biology training courses which originally drew me to the program (see more here)