I lived my dream and went on to graduate from Cornell University’s School of Agriculture and Life Sciences in 2011 with a B.S. in Entomology, Plant Sciences, Neurobiology and Behavior, and Biological Statistics. Now, when I’m not teaching high school classes at the DNA Learning Center, I’m the Curator of Entomology at the Long Island Aquarium’s Butterfly Exhibit and Insect Zoo in Riverhead, NY where I get to work with exotic insects and spiders from around the world all day long!

During my undergraduate years, I discovered that I had a real interest in understanding how and why living things grow, behave, and change the way that they do. I became fascinated by how living things perceive the world around them, and how they use and respond to environmental cues through their physiology and biochemistry. In particular, I became interested how various animals perceive and use the Earth’s magnetic field for navigation. My research focused on how monarch butterflies use magnetic fields for navigation and how Drosophila fruit flies might process this information at the biochemical level. Eventually, I hope to revisit these topics one day and work on getting a Ph.D. in molecular biology or biochemistry.

While research is very important, I realized when I was very young that sharing what I learn is just as important and way more fun! When I was 12 years old, I began volunteering at Sweetbriar Nature Center’s butterfly exhibit in Smithtown, NY. It was here that I realized that not only am I captivated by the natural world, but I also enjoyed sharing that passion with others. I spent ten years at Sweetbriar teaching the public about butterflies, insects, and spiders. During that time, I also spent my school breaks and weekends volunteering for the American Museum of Natural History’s butterfly exhibit. Now, I share my passion with the guests at the Long Island Aquarium and have done so for more than seven years.

I got involved here at the DNA Learning Center in 2017 as a taxonomist, identifying insects, spiders and marine invertebrates for the Barcode Long Island Project. I remember my first experiences at the DNA Learning Center back in high school, and how much fun I had, but I never dreamt I’d be working here! As it turned out, an educator position had opened up, and I joined the team here at the DNA Learning Center as a High School Educator. I hope to continue to share my passion for science with every student that passes through our doors!

我实现了自己的梦想，并于2011年毕业于康奈尔大学农业与生命科学学院，获得昆虫学，植物科学，神经生物学和行为学以及生物统计学学士学位。现在，当我不在DNA学习中心教高中课程时，我是纽约里弗黑德长岛水族馆蝴蝶展览和昆虫动物园的昆虫学馆长，在那里我整天都可以与来自世界各地的异国情调的昆虫和蜘蛛一起工作！

在我的本科期间，我发现我对理解生物如何以及为什么生长，行为和改变它们的方式非常感兴趣。我开始着迷于生物如何感知周围的世界，以及它们如何通过生理学和生物化学来利用和响应环境线索。特别是，我开始对各种动物如何感知和利用地球磁场进行导航产生了兴趣。我的研究重点主要集中在帝王蝶如何得用磁场进行导航，以及果蝇如何在生化水平上处理这些信息。最终，我希望有一天能重温这些话题，并努力获得分子生物学或生物化学的博士学位。

虽然研究是非常重要的，但我在很小的时候就意识到，分享我学到的东西同样重要，而且更有趣！当我12岁的时候，我开始在纽约史密斯镇的斯威特布莱尔自然中心的蝴蝶展览中做志愿者。正是在这里，我意识到我不仅被自然世界迷住了，而且我也喜欢与他人分享这种热情。我在斯威特布里亚尔工作了十年，教授公众关于蝴蝶、昆虫和蜘蛛的知识。在此期间，我还利用学校的休息时间和周末为参加美国自然历史博物馆的蝴蝶展览做志愿者。现在，我与长岛水族馆的客人分享我的热情，并且已经这样做了七年多。

2017年，我以分类学家的身份加入了DNA学习中心，为条形码长岛项目鉴定昆虫、蜘蛛和海洋无脊椎动物。我还记得我高中时在DNA学习中心的第一次经历，以及当时的我有多么的开心，但我做梦也没想到我会在这里工作！结果没想到，一个教育工作者的职位空缺了，我加入了DNA学习中心的团队，成为了一名高中教育者。我希望继续与每一位来学习中心的学生分享我对科学的热情！