I received my BA in Modern Literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz and my MS in Counseling Psychology from California State University, Long Beach. Despite the humanities degrees, I've always been a math and science nerd. My favorite science course was Stars and Stellar Evolution taught by professor Stanford Woosley, one of the preeminent experts on supernovae. My favorite math course was Discrete Mathematics taught by professor Jordan Ellenberg. Professor Ellenberg just published a great book that covers many of the topics from that class called "How Not to Be Wrong: The Power of Mathematical Thinking"! Back in Los Angeles, I worked as a tutor and coached a high school wrestling team. As a tutor, I spent a lot of time working with high school students working on Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Statistics, PreCalc, Chemistry, Psychology, and English. I really like working with teenagers because they like to have fun, but they also know how to tackle serious academic subjects. Outside of academia, I train, teach, and compete in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I love the technical aspects of the sport. I cross train in judo and wrestling. Between these sports, I have over a decade of martial arts experience. I've been a lot of cool places and met a lot of cool people in my travels to train and compete!

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Judo, Climbing, Bouldering, Bicycling