"Hello! I'm Ian, and I'm here to help you learn how to think deeply about what it is you're reading, how to express your thinking in writing, and how to apply everything you're learning to everyday life. I am lucky to have worked with students ranging from 5th grade through sophomore in college, covering topics from environmental science to sociology, with a careful focus on comprehension and real-world application of the subject materials.

As a summer camp counselor with Boy Scouts of America, I lead the ecology and conservation program and specialized in teaching the Environmental Science merit badge, helping well over 300 scouts between the ages of 11 and 17 on their Eagle Scout journey. In my role as director of that program, I used a combination of field work, classroom discussions, and written assignments to maximize student engagement while maintaining a fun, low-stress learning environment. My goal was to provide a space where students could learn the fundamentals of environmental science while discussing how they impact their environments and thinking critically about what they can do to protect their natural environments at home.

While receiving my B.A. in sociology, I became a teaching assistant for the programs introductory class where I worked with students ranging from freshmen to seniors with a strong focus on understanding the course material and composition writing while working on my thesis. Sociological writing can be tricky for anyone, and I approached this role by helping students find plain-language understandings of topics such as agency, structuration theory, and cultural capital by tying them to real-world events and their daily lives, both in study sessions for exam prep and in one-on-one settings during office hours.

It is my firm belief that students are much more likely to grasp concepts they are learning if they can also learn how to see them in the world around them. Developing a relationship in which the student feels comfortable to try out new ideas is key." less...