Chemical Education Research

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My own career path and interests were strongly influenced by my undergraduate experiences at Wellesley College and my mentor, Dr. Nancy Harrison Kolodny, long Dean of the College. During Winterterm my freshman year, Dr. Kolodny allowed me to prep the lab experiments for her Physical Chemistry 2 (Quantum Chemistry) class. I still remember as if it were yesterday, the joy and pride I felt in developing my own photographic plate for the Balmer series of hydrogen. This experience opened a door for me into the world of science. As a Wellesley student in subsequent years I developed a great love for research and teaching. The Wellesley motto "non ministrari sed ministrare" (not to be taught but to teach) truly summarizes my life philosophy. Because of my own early experiences, I see research and teaching as truly synergistic and my own research interests reflect my philosophy. Consequently, I conduct not only traditional chemical research but also chemical education research. My interests in chemical education include:

	a commitment to providing quality research experiences for younger students which means that I am interested in better understanding what undergraduate research is all about; and
	a desire for the classroom to be an open place of student inquiry which is reflected in my commitment to problem-based learning as an efficacious method of classroom and laboratory instruction;
	and a genuine desire to improve the quality of graduate education, a topic of much recent interest among administrators and educators.