School name: Baylor University
Type of school: Mid-size R1 institution
School locale: Waco, TX, USA
Is your role mostly in-person, hybrid, online (synchronous or asynchronous)? In-person
For how many years have you taught psychology? 12 years as a professor, and 4 years as a graduate student instructor
Classes you teach: Introductory Psychological Science, Introduction to Neuroscience, Cognition, Forensic Psychology, Psychology & Culture, and Psychology of Women and Gender
Specialization: Cognitive, Teaching
What size classes do you teach? The intro courses can be quite large, anywhere from 95-300 students, but the upper-level courses are capped at 28, typically!
What’s the best advice about teaching you’ve ever received? This piece of practical advice has saved me so much time with course planning; I’m thankful a mentor recommended this practice to me early on. Set aside 10–15 minutes right after each class to debrief: note what worked well and what didn’t, what students were most curious about, and what you might revise next time so future planning is more intentional and efficient.
Briefly tell us about your favorite lecture topic or course to teach. One of my favorite topics to teach is eyewitness memory, whether it be in intro, cognitive, or forensic psychology. I love inviting students to experience how confident, sincere people can nonetheless have distorted recollections, then using that surprise to unpack memory as an active, reconstructive process rather than a literal recording. Depending on the class, I use brief “crime” videos or staged events, have students give their eyewitness reports, and then reveal how factors like leading questions, post‑event misinformation, and discussions with peers can systematically bias what they remember, even creating vivid details that never occurred. This topic is especially rewarding because it sits at the intersection of cognition, social justice, and society: students see how basic memory research connects to wrongful convictions and inequities in the legal system and understand why it’s important for them to know how to translate psychological science into the real world.
What are three words that best describe your teaching style? Enthusiastic, engaging, and student-centered.
What is your teaching philosophy in 8 words or fewer? Inclusive, reflective teaching that empowers diverse student voices
What is something you are currently focused on improving or changing in your teaching? One area I am currently focused on improving in my teaching is building more intentional structures for student reflection and metacognition. While I already incorporate reflective activities, I want to refine these moments so students have clearer guidance on how to connect their lived experiences and learning processes to course concepts. My goal is to help students better recognize their own growth over time. By strengthening these reflective practices, I hope to create an even more accessible and empowering learning environment where students feel ownership of their learning and see themselves as active participants in knowledge-making.
What are you currently reading for pleasure? Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People
