Saint Michael's College

Title: Professor of Biology

Education: B.S. Manhattan College; M.A., Ph.D. Princeton University

Areas of Expertise/Research Interests: Developmental biology, cell biology, biology education

Testimonial: It is hard to put fully into words what makes Saint Michael's so special. You really need to come to campus and you will feel it.

What do you like most about teaching/working at Saint Michael's College? I get to work with terrific students over their four years of college and because of the close and caring community we enjoy at Saint Michael's, I have the pleasure of witnessing their growth and development as learners and people. And I like to think I helped. I also have wonderful colleagues.

What do you like about Saint Michael's students? They are caring, committed, and academically talented students. They are also a lot of fun and to me, learning is really a lot of fun. Our students have so much potential and it is wonderful to see their great promise realized.

What kinds of unique opportunities are available to students in your classes or department? In my upper division classes, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, we take an integrative approach in lecture, meaning that we find connections between the specific topics and other areas of biology as well as the liberal arts. For example, in Cell Biology, we examine the relationship between cell structure and function and ideas about the nature of life and how disease can be transmitted. In Develomental Biology, we consider the social context of subjects like stem cell research, or the question: what is "normal." In lab, students work in groups on questions of their own design in the context of the phenomena or organisms we are studying. In General Biology, we take a case study approach in lecture so that students can learn about cells and genes but from the perspective of a real-life problem. Laboratory in this class also provides significant opportunity for independent, creative work. We don't do "cook-book" labs. Students are hands-on and minds-on. There are also many opportunities for study outside of traditional courses in the form of research projects with faculty and internships.