Students learn best when they have meaningful experiences, reflect on them, and make better decisions as a result.
My teaching seeks to empower student voices and refine their expertise by employing evidence-based practices, active learning techniques, and research from behavioral psychology and cognitive science. In my courses, I ask students to practice new ideas and gain conceptual proficiency through working with peers and receiving regular instructor feedback. There is an electric feeling in a room of students, more than a hundred at a time, talking to their neighbors about modern analogues for the imagery on the shield of Achilles, collectively composing a Pindaric victory ode to their favorite professional or student athlete, or puzzling over an indirect construction or subjunctive mood with a partner. Increased communication between peers and professor promotes equity and accessibility by affording every student the opportunity to have their thoughts be heard. My work with innovative pedagogy has been featured in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, New York Times, and Cornell Chronicle.
Programming for Digital Humanities
Spring 2023, FSU.
This course introduces students to concepts and skills for understanding culture, both ancient and modern, with computation. Although students will learn some basics of the programming language Python, unlike other courses, our goal is not to produce data or master a computer language. Rather, it is to explore the form, style, and significance of texts and images, with case studies from digital projects on Greece and Rome. Work at home is devoted to reading and exercises in preparation for in-person discussion and problem solving; the semester culminates in an exploratory project that extends the student’s interests in artistic, written, or visual culture. The course satisfies the Digital Literacy competency and does not require background in programming or Digital Humanities.
Ancient Greek
Beginning Greek, Fall 2022–Present; Advanced, Fall 2022; FSU.
This course introduces the vocabulary and grammar of classical Attic Greek—the language of playwrights, historians, philosophers, and countless others. Through practicing the forms, function, and meaning of Greek words, you will gain the ability to read and understand increasingly complex Greek texts and advance to the intermediate level.
Hieroglyphs to HTML: History of Writing
Spring 2021, with Prof. Athena Kirk, Cornell University
An introduction to the history and theory of writing systems from cuneiform to the alphabet, historical and new writing media, and the complex relationship of writing technologies to human language and culture. Through hands-on activities and collaborative work, students will explore the shifting definitions of "writing" and the diverse ways in which cultures through time have developed and used writing systems. We will also investigate the traditional divisions of "oral" vs. "written" and consider how digital technologies have affected how we use and think about writing in encoding systems from Morse code to emoji.
Statues and Public Life
Spring 2019, with Prof. Verity Platt, Cornell University
Why do so many societies create statues, and why do they set them up in prominent spaces within their communities? How and why do statues loom so large in the public imagination? Looking both to the cultures of Ancient Greece and Rome and to the modern West, this course examines the social, political, religious, and erotic power attributed to statues across diverse periods and contexts. Drawing on dynamic "Active Learning" methods, we will explore topics including the foundational role of statues for political states (from the Athenian Tyrannicides to the Statue of Liberty), the destruction of statues (from Christian iconoclasm to Confederate monuments), creative "statue-hacks" (from Rome's Pasquino to Wall Street's "Fearless Girl") and objects of cult (from Olympian Zeus to weeping Madonnas). The course will encourage active engagement with statues relevant to students themselves, including the Cornell cast collection, statues on campus, and those in your own home town.
Greek Mythology
Fall 2019, with Todd Clary, Cornell University
Greek myths of gods and heroes have impacted culture, literature, and art in and since antiquity. They shape our imagination, mirror our actions both good and evil, and make meaning across millennia. This course surveys the myths of Greek epic, emphasizing their content and significance to early Mediterranean society, including in Greek life and consciousness; the art of story-telling; and as instruments to understand Greek literature, religion, politics, and morality.
Active Learning (American Academy of Arts & Sciences)
The American Academy’s Commission on the Future of Undergraduate Education established Strengthening the Student Educational Experience as a National Priority and proposes an array of recommendations for colleges and universities. (from AAAS Youtube.)