Personal Statement

I am applying to the Radiation Health Physics graduate program of study at Oregon State University. I have been a high school physics, mathematics, and engineering teacher for nearly the past ten years. My personal experiences in education at a small,rural school district in Western Pennsylvania have helped shape my vision and practices. It has been through these experiences that I have gained the confidence to believe I am far more capable than I had thought only ten years earlier. I am ready to apply my knowledge of physics, electronics, computer programming, and digital modeling techniques to Radiation Physics and make a greater impact on the world at large. Through continuing my education at Oregon State University, I will make this

This curriculum entailed standard undergraduate studies in Physics with an upper level emphasis on Computational Physics, Physical Optics, Electricity and Magnetism, Modern Physics, and Quantum Mechanics. Rigors of my experience in mathematics included Calculus, Linear Algebra, Mathematical Methods in Physics, and two semesters of Differential Equations. Upon the completion of my undergraduate program, I remained at SRU for three semesters to obtain my Master of Secondary Education in Science in May of

Mahmood S and as a mentor to new research associates as the end of my tenure at SRU drew to a close. This research required the use of polarizing microscopy and laser light scattering to map the phase characteristics and other optical properties of liquid crystals. In addition, I helped develop computational models to describe the phase transitions for liquid crystals as a function of concentration. I travelled to University of Colorado at Boulder to collaborate with researchers in developing best laboratory techniques and practices when studying optical phenomena of materials. Twice was I sent to Brookhaven National Laboratory in Brookhaven, New York to conduct research using synchrotron radiation to determine the thickness and splay of liquid crystal and protein samples. I have also spoken at research symposiums regarding the findings of our study as indicated in my CV.

Presently, I teach 7-12 grade Physics, Mathematics, and Engineering. Employed as a Physics teacher at Parkway West Career and Technology Center, I was a part of the curriculum development team whose aim was to promote fluency in both numeracy and literacy through the use of best educational practices. One particular program I helped develop was an “Academic Push-In” component to the existing career and technical education curriculum on