I earned a B.S. in Biomedical Sciences from Colorado State University and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Indiana University School of Medicine. My undergraduate research was using genetics and molecular biology techniques to study the IGF2BP1 promoter in canine osteosarcoma. My graduate work focused on the regulatory mechanisms involved in RNA Polymerase II transcription. While transcription is taught as if it is a fully understood process, there are still many unknowns in regard to proteins involved and their recruitment. In my later graduate work, I helped develop a novel method for investigating how mutations within a protein can affect the rest of the cell. Many diseases are caused by mutations within a single protein, and prior to our method, there was no efficient way to study how one protein disrupts cellular homeostasis, leaving a gap in the ability to link genotype to phenotype. Before coming to Marian, I taught for three years at Taylor University. My teaching focuses on molecular biology, cellular biology, bioinformatics, and genetics.
