I am currently pursuing my Ph.D. in Engineering Education at Virginia Tech (VT) after working in the aerospace industry for 4+ years with Airbus Americas Engineering. I have experience in project management and process improvement and automation as an engineer in airworthiness & certification and retrofit of aircraft cabins in Upgrade Services. My background includes a B.S. and M.S degree in mechanical engineering with a concentration in control systems and aerospace from the University of South Alabama, in my hometown where I was raised on the Gulf Coast. I'm a first-generation college student and daughter of German immigrants.

I aspire to use my connections from industry to bridge the gap between engineering education and industry needs, while helping students in their own personal development to become creative problem-solvers, effective communicators, and well-rounded, global engineers. Currently, I am the Graduate Teaching Assistant/Assistant Director for our Interdisciplinary Capstone course (IDC@VT) course with our senior-level engineering students. I have teaching and mentoring experience from elementary to graduate-level students. This has included introductory robotics using Lego Mindstorms with elementary students, flight dynamics and mentoring for middle-schoolers, and graduate teaching assistantships with foundations of engineering for first-year students, Global STEM Practice: Leadership and Culture with the Rising Sophomore Abroad Program (RSAP), Contemporary Pedagogy with graduate-level students and thermal science with senior-level mechanical engineering students. My research interests include team dynamics, professional skills development (such as conflict management), academia-industry alignment, global engineering, cultural awareness, and art & creativity in engineering (but my research interests continue to evolve and expand).