I’m a chemistry professor at Cuyamaca College, where I currently teach introductory and general chemistry courses. Throughout my teaching career, I have taught across a broad range of the chemistry curriculum, including introductory chemistry, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, physical chemistry, and analytical chemistry. This range of experience has given me a broad perspective on how students develop their understanding of chemistry as they progress from foundational concepts into more advanced coursework.

Prior to my current role, I spent nine years at San Diego State University from 2014 to 2023. During that time, I also had the opportunity to teach in the country of Georgia through SDSU from 2015 to 2020. Teaching in different academic and cultural environments allowed me to work with diverse student populations and further develop my approach to chemistry education and the effective use of educational technology.

I have extensive experience using Cengage resources, particularly OWL and WebAssign, as part of my chemistry courses. I used OWL both at San Diego State University and while teaching for SDSU in Georgia, giving me experience implementing and adapting the platform across different courses, student populations, and learning environments. I value the variety of question types, detailed feedback, and opportunities these platforms provide for students to practice and reinforce challenging concepts outside of the classroom.

One aspect of these platforms that is particularly important to me is the ability to customize the learning experience. I enjoy developing my own questions, assignments, and instructional content within the platform rather than relying exclusively on publisher-provided materials. This allows me to transform the platform into a learning environment that is closely aligned with my teaching style, course objectives, and the specific needs of my students. In many ways, I view the platform as a framework that I can build upon to create my own customized learning experience for students.

Over the years, I have also explored and used resources from other educational technology providers, which has given me a broader perspective on what makes digital learning tools effective for both students and faculty. I’m particularly interested in usability, meaningful feedback, accessibility, student engagement, instructor flexibility, and the ability for instructors to create and integrate their own content. I believe educational technology is most effective when it enhances an instructor’s teaching rather than dictating how a course should be taught.

I enjoy sharing the perspective of a practicing chemistry instructor and contributing ideas that can make educational platforms more effective for real classrooms. I’m especially interested in collaborating on the development and improvement of chemistry resources and exploring ways to give instructors greater flexibility to create, customize, and integrate their own content while ultimately supporting student learning and success.