Culturally Responsive  Pedagogy

Having the opportunity to teach at a tribal community college (Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute) in New Mexico was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my career thus far. I knew very little about Native American culture and focused my efforts first in learning about the culture from an experienced mentor and observing his class for one semester. This allowed me to interact with the students and gain insight into their perspectives. I learned many things from my mentor (Dr. Nader Vadiee) and the students, one of the most important being the impact of bringing culturally relevant engineering challenges to the classroom.

I am interested in studying the impact of student-developed culturally relevant problems on engineering identity and efficacy in first year students.

Art + Engineering

Growing up in a family with many artists, I have always had an interest in painting and drawing. Collaborating with my sister, Tiffany Pascal, we wrote a paper about using comics in engineering to teach complex topics. I have since worked with Luke Landherr co-leading workshops on this topic. I am also involved with the Krenicki Arts and Engineering Institute at UConn and am continuing to explore potential collaborations and research at the intersection of art and engineering.

Playful Learning and Engineering Ethics

Gamifying engineering ethics to educate first year engineering students on the importance of ethical decision making in the field.