EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT GRADUATE SCHOLARS

Helena García Escudero

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Helena (she/her) is a fourth-year PhD student in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine. Her research lies at the intersection of cosmology and particle physics, focusing on neutrino properties, cosmological tensions, and non-standard early universe models. Helena’s teaching identity is shaped by her commitment to equity, mentorship, and student-centered learning. She strives to create an inclusive environment where students feel empowered to engage with complex scientific ideas and develop critical thinking skills. She integrates team bonding activities in her classes to foster collaboration and create a sense of community among students. Helena is inspired by the mentors who guided her own academic journey, and she believes that education is a powerful tool for empowerment. She is dedicated to fostering a supportive space where students can grow intellectually and personally. Outside of academia, she enjoys outdoor sports, running, cooking, grilling, and exploring diverse cuisines with friends. She is also actively involved in outreach programs that promote diversity in STEM.

Emily Catherine Parise

Department of Drama

Emily Parise (Ph.D. candidate, eparise@uci.edu) is a Ph.D. Candidate in Drama and Theatre. Her primary areas of research include Shakespeare studies, dramaturgy, theatre history, early modern politics and popularity, and stage properties. She has also published an essay on James Ijames’s Fat Ham, titled “‘They eat. They talk shit’: The Role of Barbecue in Fat Ham’s Queer Utopia,” in the collection Revenge is Mad Hard, edited by Valerie Pye and Danielle Rosvally (Palgrave MacMillian). Emily is a Pedagogical Scholar, as well as a WAC WID Graduate Scholar. She is a founding member of the Shakespeare Association of America Graduate Committee. Emily’s teaching focuses on accessible and diverse approaches to arts and humanities curriculum, with an emphasis on process-focused writing pedagogy. In addition to writing pedagogy, she is interested in active learning and embodied classroom practices. She has been the most inspired by the instructors who have taken the careful time to guide and mentor her throughout her scholarly process, including Dr. Donovan Sherman (Seton Hall University), Dr. Paige McGinley (Washington University in St. Louis), and her dissertation advisor here at UCI, Dr. Ian Munro. She is also immensely grateful for the mentorship she’s received in DTEI. Her biggest passions remain Shakespeare and teaching, but Emily also works as a production dramaturg and writing tutor. In her free time, she enjoys dancing ballet.

Karma Rose Zavita

Department of Criminology, Law and Society

Karma Rose (she/her) is a sixth year doctoral candidate in the Criminology, Law and Society Program. Her research focuses on the deterrent impacts of institutional messaging on reports of campus-based sexual assaults. Her dissertation research method of using focus groups with undergraduate students parallels her teaching style; active and student-driven. As an instructor, Karma Rose creates innovative ways to help students draw meaningful connections between course content and their lives. She designs structured and creative ‘lab’ assignments that center diversity, challenge students’ thinking, and enable them to have their own “aha” moments outside of the classroom. Karma Rose is actively engaged with the Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation, and currently faces a ‘nice’ problem of deciding between a career as faculty or in the Educational Development field.

Kimberly Grace Dennis

Department of Informatics

Primary DTEI Mentor: Josh Arimond, Lead Coordinator, Certificated Learning Assistants Program

Kimberly (they/she) is a fourth-year PhD Candidate in Informatics. Their research focuses broadly on the tensions between fans and mainstream media. In their dissertation they are using case studies of video games to examine how dominant ways of representing sexuality and race in mainstream games transform when they come into contact with queer and racialized fan practices. For Kimberly, one of the best parts about doing research is getting to share it with their students. Kimberly’s teaching identity is shaped by taking a student-centered approach. They strive to create a supportive and equitable classroom that prioritizes students’ health and well-being in order to give students agency and control in their learning. Kimberly has been inspired by their mentors who have pushed them beyond what they thought their boundaries were while also prioritizing their well-being and supporting the goals they established. Kimberly has tried to apply this approach with their own students and has seen how beneficial it is. Outside of academia, they enjoy playing Dungeons and Dragons, snowboarding, and dancing at the Renaissance Faire.

Natasha Glendening

Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health

Natasha Glendening (she/her) is a fifth year PhD Candidate in Public Health. Her research focuses broadly on global health and infectious disease epidemiology. Her dissertation concerns malaria and healthcare accessibility at an emerging gold mining community in Western Ethiopia. Natasha integrates evidence-based inclusive practices to ensure a learning environment that everybody can participate in without fear or judgement. She believes strongly in the concept of pedagogical wellness, to holistically promote students’ scholarly and emotional development throughout their time in college. She is particularly interested in providing mentorship support to help students to uncover and understand the ‘Hidden Curriculum’ so that every student can participate in all aspects of college life, to the best of their ability. Natasha has experienced first hand the benefits of strong and supportive mentorship, from her own time as a very lost and confused undergraduate student, and credits her success in part to the guidance of many inspirational women who supported her along the way! Natasha finds inspiration in teaching by helping students to uncover health and social issues they are passionate about and she hopes to one day get a full time tenure-track role at a higher education institution that centers student learning.