Background: I have been with the School of Pharmacy since August of 2006. In my instructional staff position, I work with students in three SOP classes: 718-420, 718-421, and 718-558. I have a general lab management job, and it has a lot of different responsibilities. I work to ensure that the lab exercises are relevant and appropriate for the course goals. This is one of my favorite parts of the job and gives me the freedom to completely overhaul less successful labs and introduce new labs. I really enjoy thinking about the learning objectives of the courses and working to make the lab more useful. During the semester I work with the Teaching Associates to make sure that they are comfortable with the material and prepared for the labs. This is the easiest part of my job, because I always have a great group of smart and competent TAs to work with. I think of us as a teaching team, and many of the successful lab changes were originally based on TA suggestions. I also work as an instructor during the class to present background lab material to students, and answer any questions that they might have about the lab exercises. In my extra time I set up the lab for each new exercise, order supplies, maintain equipment, and make up solutions as necessary.

There are many things that I like about my job. It allows me to do a lot of different things, and I feel like I am always learning. I also have summers off, which is important because I like to spend a lot of time with my kids. I didn't start out intending to be instructional staff, and my professional journey in this direction has been something of a crooked path. Originally I was interested in biology research. I went to Ohio State University to get a Bachelors degree in Biology, and then I completed a PhD in the Plant Research Laboratory at Michigan State University. I was interested in the genetic basis of plant response to gravity, which is a fascinating and complex story of signal transduction and directed growth regulation. I came to UW-Madison to do a Post-Doc in the same field, and kind of fell off the research scientist career path. While in Madison, my husband Lindsey Lee opened Ground Zero Coffee on Williamson Street and Cargo Coffee on South Park Street, and we had three kids. After my Post-Doc ended I worked part time at the Madison Area Technical College for BIO-LINK, an NSF funded Center for Advanced Technological Education, and also with the biotechnology students. I really enjoyed working at MATC, and after funding for my position there ended, I found an instructional staff position at UW in the Plant Pathology department. After two years at that job, I applied for my current position, which is more challenging and a better fit for me overall. I really enjoy working with the Doctor of Pharmacy and Pharmacology/Toxicology Students, and appreciate the SOP climate, which is very supportive of instructional staff.