Teaching Portfolio
I. Background Information
Component 1
Statement of Teaching
Kaitlan W.E. Angel
College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR
My life has in some ways mirrored the majestic and powerful volcanoes that I study, because they too were created from turbulent circumstances. I was born into a working poor family in rural Indiana to a disabled veteran father and a mother soon to be terminally ill. My full name is Kaitlan Winnetka Elizabeth Angel. Winnetka is a Cherokee name meaning “journey”. Perhaps by my namesake I have always been interested in taking the path less traveled, especially coming from an impoverished background. My family has suffered from generational poverty and it is apparent to me that our indigenous roots probably play a role in the rampant alcoholism, drug addiction, and lack of education I was exposed to throughout my childhood. I am 1/16 Cherokee and 1/8 Blackfoot native. At seventeen years of age I had little more than a ninth-grade education as I had stopped attending school years prior to work and help support my family. At eighteen, I began to attend community college, and pursue an advanced degree. I have since conducted research in a geophysics and GIS lab, mapped the lava flows of an active Ecuadorian volcano, and developed curricula for AP Physics I and Earth Systems as a certified high school teacher. I have accomplished a great deal considering I did not graduate high school and all my immediate family passed away in tragic circumstances by the time I was twenty-three years old. Both of my parents died fifty-three days apart in my junior year of university. With resilience and courage, I increasingly made academics my highest priority.
Now, I am fascinated by the power of an education in the life of under resourced youth. My teaching philosophy comes down to a focus on engagement, accessibility, conceptual understanding, practical skills, and continuing to evolve as a teacher. During lectures, I strive to keep students engaged, interested, and motivated. Whether through interactive examples, peer instruction, or just cold calling students by name to ask a question. I encourage students to think during class. My ideal lesson is fully collaborative, with students taking the lead in terms of their own learning while I act as a facilitator and mentor. In order to be the best mentor and facilitator, I must make myself accessible through well-times office hours, email availability, and being present to build relationships with students. In my experience one of the most compelling things you can do with your students is build relationships with them through emotional consistency and appropriate vulnerability.
Throughout my time as an educator, I have emphasized creative avenues to engage communities in learning opportunities. It is in my nature to seek out ways to contribute to a positive campus and classroom culture. My undergraduate university hired me to be a Peer Lead Team Learning (PLTL) Leader for differential and integral calculus classes. I discovered a passion and patience for teaching that inspired me to devote years of my life to working with youth at an inner-city college preparatory secondary school in Dallas. At the school in which I taught, 70% of the student body were at risk for not graduating and 75% were supported by family or guardian incomes below the poverty line . I was the founding team administrator and coach for the robotics team at the school. I worked for two years with Hispanic and African American youths to compete in the international high school FIRST Robotics Competitions. In collaboration with my undergraduate university, I planned and executed a college-level fossil hunting field trip for my Earth Systems students to explore how the environment of Texas has changed since it was covered by the Cretaceous Interior Seaway. In August,, I will be working with a housing insecure youth support program in Salem, Oregon to organize art and science field trips as well as hands-on introductory programming workshops. I excel at in-person interactions with students by practicing active listening and being intentionally high-emergy during lecture.
After completing my master’s degree in Geology and Geophysics, I have been invited to be a nuclear engineering instruction officer the with U.S. Navy. I plan to either go into the Navy as a nuclear engineering instructor or obtain a Ph.D. at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Whether I immediately join a Ph.D. program or the Navy after my master’s I ultimately plan to go on to become a geophysics professor at a research university so that I can be integrally involved both as a teacher and as a research mentor in the training of future scientists and science enthusiasts. With my strong background in geophysics and education, I am well positioned to teach Earth Science in a rigorous manner. In order to further cultivate my teaching skills, I intend to complete Oregon State University’s Graduate Certificate in University Teaching and develop my teaching philosophy further. Each component included in this Portfolio was chosen to accentuate my best qualities as an instructor.
In this teaching portfolio, I have included a planning component to detail my ability to plan on a monthly and daily basis as well as student assessments to discuss how I design assessments and provide feedback for students to reflect on. I have been taught that one of the most effective ways to improve classroom presence is to video record yourself teaching and reflect on how the student’s are responding to your instructions, because I believe that this is a strong practice I am sharing recordings of me in this portfolio as well as my reflection process. Last but not least, I have included formal professional evaluations from the my work as a secondary school teacher and letters of recommendation from my highly respected colleagues and former school administrators so that they may share my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher as well as how I may benefit a naval or research campus as an instructor.
Component 2
Curriculum Vitae
angelka@oregonstate.edu
Oregon State University | Corvallis, OR 97331
Education
2019 - Present | Ph.D. | Oregon State University | Major: Geology and Geophysics | G.P.A: 4.0
2012 - 2016 | B.S. | University of Texas at Dallas | Major: Geoscience | G.P.A: 3.5
Academic Interests
Electromagnetic Geophysical Methods
Geothermal Exploration
Volcanology
STEM Education
Related Professional Experience
Aug. 2021 - Present | Field Girl Geophysics (FiGG) | Founder and Head Instructor
Founded a tuition-free multi-day expedition for high school girls to engage in inquiry based lab experiments in order to develop foundational skills in seismic and electromagnetic geophysical methods. FiGG accepts young women (15 to 16 years old) not based on their academic standing but on their desire to learn about the natural world and develop a strong physics and coding foundation. Girls are led through inquiry based lessons and confidence building exercises where they will design lab experiments with the aid of an instructor to obtain a fundamental understanding of wave principles, signal modulation/demodulation, mapping equipotential lines of a dipole charge setup, mapping magnetic field lines, and open source coding.
2021 - Present | Oregon State University | Research Assistant
Research Assistant in the National Geoelectromagnetic facility at Oregon State. Please see the below Research Experience section of the CV for details about current projects.
2019 - 2021 | Oregon State University | Graduate Teaching Assistant
Graduate Teaching Assistant for online and in-person geology and geophysics courses at Oregon State University. Plans for engaging labs given with the given course materials from instructors. Administers exams. Grades assignments.
2016 - 2019 | Uplift Luna Preparatory Secondary | AP Physics 1 and Earth Systems Teacher
Gained teacher certification and developed exceptional organizational and communication skills while teaching a high-school and college level physics course at a Title 1 inner city charter
school with a 70% population of students at risk for not graduating according to the Texas Education Agency. Developed the AP Physics 1 and Earth Systems curriculum for Luna Preparatory. Taught Physics and AP Physics 1 for two years and Earth Systems for one year. Planned lessons for the development of scientific literacy and oral skills among an ESL population of 65%. Differentiated lessons to meet the needs of low, medium, and high-level scholars. Used data tracking to plan for lessons, re-teaches, and interventions to monitor scholar mastery of content.
April - August, 2015 | Cirrus Associates, LLC | Geologist Intern
Edited and compiled Phase I environmental site assessments as an intern for an environmental consulting company. Used Esri software to create aerial and topographic reference images for Phase I environmental site assessments.
2014 - 2016 | UT Dallas | Peer Lead Team Leader for Differential and Integral Calculus
Lead weekly review session for differential and integral calculus, respectively MATH 2413 and MATH 2414. Advised students on academic material and study preparation.
Research Experience
2020 - Present | Oregon State University | National Geoelectromagnetic Facility| Advised by Dr. Adam Schultz
Using forward modeling methods to develop an electromagnetic geophysics sensitivity analysis to design a magnetotelluric station array to model the electrical conductivity structure of a potential magma chamber beneath the southwest flank of the Cotopaxi volcano in Ecuador.
2021 - Present | Oregon State University | National Geoelectromagnetic Facility| Advised by Dr. Adam Schultz
A NETL funded project to model the MT signal available from a high powered CSEM marine study to investigate potential natural hazards associated with offshore drilling.
2016 | Los Alamos National Laboratories | Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience (SAGE) | Advised by Dr. Louise Pellerin
Paper and Presentation Title: Coupling in TEM Data at the Skillet Well
Collected and evaluated TEM data from a well in the Española Basin of the Rio Grande Rift. Identified galvanically coupled data and proposed future works for the site.
2014 - 2015 | UT Dallas | Geophysics Lab | Advised by Dr. John Ferguson
Evaluated a potential meteor impact site in the city of Dallas. Multiple rock samples containing an anomalous amount of metallic iron minerals were found near the University. Research included gathering historical geologic data, historical geophysical data, and maps for analysis of the site. The historical data and maps were compiled in Esri.
2013 - 2014 | UT Dallas | Cybermapping Lab | Advised by Dr. Carlos Aiken
Utilized Esri software and satellite imagery to help develop photorealistic models by texture mapping digital photography onto 3D models of geology and manmade features.
Authored or Co-Authored Presentations and Publications
2016 Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience (SAGE) | Assessing Coupling in Transient Electromagnetic Data at the Skillet Well, Española Basin of the Rio Grande Rift | Presentation Author
2015 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Student Conference | SCooping AsteRoid Anchor Borer (SCARAB) | Presentation and Publication Co-Author
2014 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Student Conference | Barrier Asteroid Garment System (BAGS) | Presentation and Publication Co-Author
Extracurricular University Services
2020 - Present| OSU | Founder and President of SEG Oregon Chapter
2014 - 2015 | UT Dallas | Founder and President of Space Exploration Society
2014 - 2015 | NASA’s Micro-g NExt Program | Community Outreach Coordinator for an Undergraduate Aerospace Engineer and Design Team
Related Academic Experience
2016 | South Dakota School of Mines | Geologic Field Camp in the Republic of Ecuador
Volcanology focused field camp in the Andes Mountains and Galápagos Islands with Dr. Dan Kelley of Bowling Green State University, with funding provided by the South Dakota School of Mines.
Awards and Scholarships
2021 | SEG | Society of Exploration Geophysics Student Scholarship
2020 | OSU | Keith H. Wrolstad Memorial Scholarship in Geophysics and Marine Geology
2015 | Dallas Geological Society | Dallas Geological Society Award and Scholarship Recipient
2015 | UT Dallas | Field Camp I Scholarship Recipient
Languages
English | Native speaker, writer, and reader.
Spanish | Beginner writer and speaker. Intermediate reader.
References
Dr. Tuba Ozkan-Haller | Interim Dean and CEOAS Professor | Oregon State University
tuba.ozkan-haller@oregonstate.edu
Dr. Pieter-Ewald Share | CEOAS Professor | Oregon State University
sharep@oregonstate.edu
Dr. John Ferguson | Associate Department Head | University of Texas at Dallas
ferguson@utdallas.edu
Dr. Daniel Kelley | Associate Professor of Geology | Bowling Green State University
kelleyd@hocking.ed
II. Teaching Artifacts and Reflections
Component 3
Planning(coming soon)
Included is a unit plan with learning objectives for Circuits and Electricity for an AP Physics 1 class. I have also included an Ohm’s Law lab lesson plan with the handout. This lesson plan is intended to highlight how I facilitate lessons while leaving students responsible for identifying equipment and their use as well as hold students accountable to produce, think, explore, and practice safety in a physics classroom.
Unit Plan: Unit 5 Circuits and Electricity
Lesson Plan 5.4: Ohm's Law Lab
Lab Handout
Component 4
Recordings and Self-reflection (coming soon)
Here I will include brief descriptions of lessons I have video recorded and reflected upon as well as links to watch the recordings.
Component 5
Student Work Samples (coming soon)
Here I will include samples of differentiated assignments from a waves lab. I will also include evaluation of the student’s work. I will share the work of a student who has shown limited progress, moderate progress, and exemplar progress. I will also review methods for students to reflect on their work after receiving instructor feedback.
III. Professional Information
Component 6
Formal Evaluations (coming soon)
Formal evaluations from colleagues, deans, or bosses.
Component 7
Letters of Recommendation (coming soon)
Throughout my time as a secondary school educator I have had the pleasure of working with seasoned educators. I have collected mentors and peers along the way that will forever change my life. A few of them have been in a position to write me letters of recommendation for various scientific funding sources as I pursue research projects that have a strong educational broader impact. Below are letters of reference from a dean I worked with for three years and a colleague of mine I also worked with for three years.
Shirin Fahroudi - Dean of Scholars
Hello,
Dear GRFP Reader,
It is my pleasure to recommend Kaitlan Angel for the Graduate Research Funded Position in association with the National Science Foundation.
I am the Dean of Student at Uplift Luna Secondary School in Dallas, Texas. I have been in K-12 education for 22 years. I had the honor of working with Ms. Kaitlan Angel for three years at Luna Preparatory as both her Dean and as a mentor. I would like to share with you how granting her this fellowship will benefit any academic community she participates in as she has the resilience to and heart to work with students from diverse backgrounds no matter the challenge.
Intellectual Merits
In her first year of teaching, Ms. Angel was in the process of obtaining a Texas State teaching certificate as she developed curriculum for a new advanced placement (AP) physics program at Uplift Luna Preparatory Secondary School. A formidable task considering that prior to her first year of teaching, Ms. Angel had no classroom management experience. Through a partnership with the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI), she was tasked with developing lessons, labs, and a classroom culture that launched eighty-six students from academically diverse backgrounds into a college-level physics course. Through diligent training, continuous reflection, and data driven instruction Ms. Angel developed swiftly as an educator. After facilitating original lessons designed to build skill sets necessary to be successful in a university level science class, Ms. Angel would intentionally use assessments to determine what would come next in instruction. In data driven instruction, data is collected through formative and summative assessments. Formative assessment data is qualitative and quantitative information that is collected as teaching and learning are occurring. Summative assessment data is gathered at the end of a learning period usually through exams. As an effective teacher, Ms. Angel would collect both forms of data and analyze it to look for patterns of success and needs to meet learning objectives. She adapted her pedagogy to serve students and created engaging lessons that propelled Uplift Luna to have the third highest AP Physics 1 pass rate in a network of twenty campuses. The fact that she was able to facilitate such strong student outcomes with a demographic of students that is greatly underrepresented in STEM is incredible.
Ms. Angel taught AP Physics 1 and Honors Physics for two years, before she began developing a rigorous curriculum for a new Earth Systems course offered to high-needs students. She excelled in building fundamental skills for many students that had been underserved by their science courses previously and she was often seen working with students on her breaks or after school for one-on-one tutoring. She organized several field trips over the course of her time at Uplift Luna that greatly increased interest in science by the student body. She took her students on a Physics Field Day trip organized by the University of Texas at Arlington where, with her guidance, they won a physics design challenge. She designed and organized an Earth Systems lesson that included taking students on a fossil dig in collaboration with the University of Texas at Dallas. For the past three years she has been planning a trip for seven to ten students at Uplift Luna to travel to the Pacific Coast of South America to study the Ring of Fire in Ecuador. Utilizing her background in STEM and STEM education, she will be successful in advancing scientific knowledge through research and then sharing the results of her work with engaging field-work opportunities and learning experiences for students. I am confident that with the NSF Graduate Research fellowship, Ms. Angel will use her experience and strengths to improve outcomes in research and academia like she has done for more than three-hundred students she taught during her time at Uplift Luna.
Broader Impacts
In 2018, Uplift Luna Preparatory Secondary School had a minority enrollment of ninety-seven percent. The majority of the student body, about eighty percent, were Hispanic and about fifteen percent were black. Many of the three-hundred highschool students that Ms. Angel served were on their way to becoming first generation highschool graduates and came from low-income areas. With the capability of inspiring and mentoring students that have historically been disengaged from science, she is incredibly motivated to expand opportunities for underrepresented groups in STEM. With the assistance of a small motivated group of students, she started and led a fifteen member mixed-gender FIRST Robotics Team, Atlas Orbis. About one-third of the team was female. This was the first robotics team at Uplift Luna and it was comprised of Hispanic, Latino, black, and white students that had varying degrees of academic aptitude. Her work with these students greatly benefitted the campus culture as the team took a great deal of pride in their commitment to engineering and competing in robotics. Ms. Angel has consistently been committed to building relationships with the student body in order to inspire and engage them in their schooling. I will never forget when she volunteered her already limited time to practice with two sixteen-year old boys to do a punk-rock cover of a Christmas song for the December school talent show. She will be a valuable asset to any organization seeking to increase diversity and maintain a positive work culture.
Her persistent commitment to advancing knowledge through rigorous curriculum development and innovative implementation has established Ms. Angel as an educator with the reputation of exceeding expectations in an academic environment. With a passion for instruction rarely seen in science education I have no doubt that Ms. Angel will be an incredible asset to any research or instructional community she wishes to join. She will thrive in the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Her background in working with minority students from low-income backgrounds will provide an invaluable perspective in the pursuit of increasing gender, racial, ethnic, and socio-economic diversity in science, technology, engineering, and math programs.
Regards,
Shirin Fahroudi
Ashley Richardson - English Department Head and Instructor
Dear GFSD Committee,
It is my pleasure to recommend Kaitlan Angel for a Graduate Fellowship for STEM Diversity at USC-RAN in collaboration with Los Alamos National Labs.
I am Ashley Richardson, an Educational Consultant at PowerSchool Educational Technology. Before joining PowerSchool, I taught in public schools for 12 years, serving as a classroom teacher, district curriculum writer, and department chair where I oversaw the department and provided instructional coaching. I have observed and coached many teachers during that time. I worked alongside Kaitlan at Uplift Luna Secondary, a Title I Charter School in Dallas, TX that served primarily African-American and Latinx students. Kaitlan Angel is one individual I have worked with who uniquely stands out with her dedication to STEM education, her diligence in cultivating equitable spaces, and her with students of diverse backgrounds.
What I found to be Kaitlan’s best asset is her ability to leverage her enthusiasm and expertise in the sciences to build equitable spaces where students thrived. Kaitlan’s classes ranged from AP Physics to Earth Systems, courses that are historically difficult for high school students. She did not let this deter her in the slightest. By engaging lessons and utilizing culturally-responsive pedagogy, Kaitlan created immense buy-in from her students who thrived in her classroom. Additionally, Kaitlan instilled a growth mindset in her students, often reminding them that science education is a skill that anyone can refine. Her positive attitude and persistent framing of a growth mindset created an equitable space where all students felt like they could succeed. Watching her interact with a group of students that many others had written off was exciting and fun. She was always sincerely interested in all her students’ progress and encouraged them to try their best in every activity.
It’s not just her instructional skills that impress me. As a model of STEM equity, Kaitlin’s diligence paid off when she founded Luna’s first-ever Robotics team. Adding this type of competitive science offering to our school was a game changer as Kaitlan’s influence grew outside of the classroom. She had a reputation for being excited and dedicated to science education, and students who were even minimally interested in robotics joined the club. After a semester, the Robotics team had a core group of members who competed with vigor and enthusiasm, thrilled to be representing not only Luna but their own communities in such an esteemed way. To see students of diverse backgrounds excited about Robotics was truly incredible. It is a testament to Kaitlan’s steadfast commitment to STEM education and diversity that the Robotics Team was such a safe space for so many students.
It is my sincere belief that Kaitlan Angel would be an incredible asset to the GFSD Fellowship. Her enthusiasm for science education, her commitment to creating equitable environments and processes, and her intrinsic understanding of how to motivate students and colleagues set her apart from any other teacher I have had the pleasure of working with. I’m confident she will continue to leverage her passion and skills to advance diversity in STEM in and outside a collegiate classroom. If you have any questions regarding my recommendation for Kaitlan, I welcome you to reach out to me via email or call.
Thank you for your consideration,
Ashley Richardson