Education
University of Arkansas – Fayetteville Ph.D. Mathematics

Courses Taught
Calculus I (MAT 124)
Elementary Statistics (MAT114)
Differential Equations (MAT312)

Research Interests
Besides teaching, I also conduct research in geometric analysis and partial differential equations.  My passion for these areas has stemmed from a desire to study pure mathematics that can be readily applied to the real world.  Currently, the focus of I research is on modeling the evolution of surfaces in time.  Examples include modeling the shape of an ice cube as it melts or of a river stone as it is worn away by water and friction with the river bottom.  In particular, I focus on a specific case in which some constraints, which may change from one point to the next, are added to the system.  A standard example of this is the parallel-parking problem.  Because our cars cannot slide to the left or right, we are forced to take a special curved path to park.  Numerous applications of constrained motion can be found in scientific disciplines ranging from robotic control and planning problems to digital image reconstruction and new models of neurobiological visual processing.

Personal Information
Outside of Westminster, I enjoy reading (mostly science-fiction/fantasy novels), cooking/baking, swing dancing, and spending time with friends and family.  My husband, Josh, and I moved to Columbia in August 2008 and couldn’t be happier living here.