Portfolio
A collection of my work as a first year student
Welcome to my portfolio. This is a small assembly of some of the work I have completed through my first year at Penn State. Through this portfolio, I am showcasing the variety of interests, both academic and personal, that I have been able to explore this year. My artifacts are presented in chronological order, showing how I developed and expanded upon my interests this year.
Moore Tornado Poster
For my School of Earth and Mineral Science (EMS) first-year Seminar, I took Dr. Yvette Richardson’s Physics of Severe Weather course. Our final project was to complete a scientific poster on a tornado and present at the EMS Communication of Undergraduate Experience on December 4, 2024. This poster explains the events of the 2013 Moore, Oklahoma Tornado, and was my first experience researching a tornado as a Meteorology and Atmospheric Science major.
This I Believe Podcast
In the beginning of the second semester, my Rhetoric and Civiv Life II class was assigned to create a podcast in which we explained one of our fundamental beliefs. For my podcast, I chose the belief that we should appreciate the Earth more. Within both my academic and personal lives, the environment is a huge driving factor in my decisions and interests. This podcast highlights why I feel so strongly about nature.
Research
This past winter, I had the honor of being selected for the NASA PA Space Grant Consortium Research Internship Program. Through this program, I was partnered to work with Dr. Kenneth Davis in the Meteorology and Atmospheric Science Department here at Penn State. I have spent the past four months researching heat fluxes in the Chesapeake Bay as part of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement’s Coast-Urban-Rural Atmospheric Gradient Experiment. This artifact shows an example of some of the data I have analyzed through this project.
Forgive Myself
Here at Penn State, I am a part of Vole, Penn State’s largest dance organization. Continuing my love for dance, I have performed in Vole’s showcase both semesters, and additionally, choreographed a dance alongside a fellow dancer, which was performed in this semester’s showcase. Choreographing this dance was a great opportunity to expand my leadership skills within an activity I enjoy.
Link to Full Video: (Timestamp 1:09:49 - 1:12:15)
Issue Brief
For my Rhetoric and Civic Life II class, I was assigned to write a 1500-2000 word paper on an issue that holds significance to me. I chose to write about the use of child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Globally, the use of child soldiers is a huge problem, but the DRC is arguably one of the worst violators. This assignment allowed me to grow as a civic advocate and researcher, while researching a topic that I feel very strongly about changing.
Meteorological Coding
For my Introduction to Programming Techniques for Meteorology class, we completed a variety of assignments where we worked on coding meteorological data. I also honors optioned the course, which involved creating extra elements within the plots. For our fourth assignment, I was able to create a 2x2 storm plot, similar to what can be seen on NWS and NOAA forecasting websites. This was a culmination of everything I learned within my introductory meteorology class and the coding techniques I learned through my programming class.
Thank you for exploring my portfolio. I hope you were able see a comprehensive display of my interests and achievements through my first year at Penn State.