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Matt DeMaio

Biology

demaioma@umich.edu

Matthew DeMaio is an MS candidate in Chemical Biology and a certificate student in Precision Health. He received a BS in Neuroscience from the University of Michigan in 2018 and then worked in clinical research at Michigan Medicine. Matt has a passion for teaching in the sciences and helping students find confidence in their ability to succeed. Matt coordinated Making the Most of Michigan, a seminar for undergraduate students in their first-year at Michigan, and Leadership and Facilitation in Community Building over the course of three academic years. During his graduate studies, Matt has taught Biology 173 four times and ELI 994 once. He is also an alum of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, in which he taught English to Italian high school students in Campobasso, Italy. In his free time, Matt enjoys cooking, learning Italian, and exploring Michigan.

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Blake Ebright

Combined Program in Education & Psychology (CPEP)

bebright@umich.edu

Blake Ebright is a Ph.D. candidate in the Combined Program in Education & Psychology (CPEP). His research is focused on the development of critical thinking in college students and how instructors can develop their students’ domain-general soft skills in an equitable way. He has served as an instructor of record for several courses in psychology and in education, and as a GSI for several courses in psychology. In addition to being a GSIC, he facilitates GSI Teaching Orientation Practice Teaching sessions for CRLT and CRLT Engineering. Before joining the CPEP community at U-M, he earned his M.S. and B.A. in psychology and women’s studies and then worked as a quantitative researcher in psychology labs at U-M. In his free time, Blake enjoys refereeing rowing, football, and soccer.

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Amanda Gibson

Neuroscience Graduate Program

gibsonag@umich.edu

Amanda Gibson is a Ph.D. candidate in the Neuroscience Graduate Program (NGP). Her dissertation examines the effects and interactions of early-life and adult stress on reproduction. Amanda received her BA in Psychology and Spanish from Hope College, where she was a teaching assistant for neuroscience, physiology, and organic chemistry. At the University of Michigan, Amanda has served as a graduate student instructor for Human Physiology, leading a weekly discussion section through in-person, hybrid, and remote modalities. She has also taken courses through the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education and developed a passion for promoting student development. She helped to design and co-lead a twice-weekly remote professional development workshop for extramural undergraduate researchers who were unable to complete summer research in person due to the coronavirus pandemic, emphasizing the incorporation of personal and social identities with professional identity. Amanda also served as an instructional aide to the NGP in Fall of 2020 to help the program develop evidence-based, remote pedagogical practices. In her free time, she enjoys listening to an ever-growing array of podcasts, exploring the Farmer's Market, and walking along the Huron River.

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Gillian Gray

Philosophy

graygv@umich.edu

Gillian Gray is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Philosophy Department. Her research interests are in social metaphysics and ethics; in particular, she is interested in exploring how individuals form social identities and examining the moral wrongs that can arise when individuals’ identities do not receive uptake from others. She has been a GSI in the University of Michigan’s Philosophy Department for five semesters, including one semester as instructor-of-record. She also spent a year as a GSM in the Philosophy Department. As an instructor, Gillian loves challenging students to question their previous assumptions about the world. She is also committed to making philosophy–a subject often seen as abstract and theoretical–relevant to students' lives. In her free time, Gillian enjoys cooking and baking, reading mystery novels, and playing board games.

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Daisy Haas

Chemistry

dahaas@umich.edu

Daisy Haas is a Ph.D. student in the Chemistry Department, researching chemistry education. Daisy’s interests lie in the intersection of writing, reasoning, and justice in the chemistry classroom. Daisy deeply believes in creating curriculum, activities, and classroom experiences that are inclusive of all identities and create a culture of care. They serve as a GSI for an upper-level biochemistry writing course and a GSM for introductory organic chemistry laboratories at the University of Michigan. Daisy earned a BS in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry and a minor in Rhetoric and Writing at Chapman University. In her free time, Daisy enjoys cooking, reading, biking, walking, and playing with their cat, Ivy.

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Brittany Hardy

Classical Studies

hardyb@umich.edu

Brittany Hardy is a Ph.D. candidate in the department of Classical Studies. Her dissertation, supported by the Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship, is an interdisciplinary examination of women, gender, and the nonhuman in the poems of the ancient Greek poet Pindar. Brittany began teaching at the University of Michigan in 2018, and she has had the opportunity to teach language classes, first-year writing classes, and discussion sections of classical civilization courses. She is passionate about cultivating a strong sense of community responsibility in each of her classes. Principles of equity-focused teaching and eco-pedagogy guide her teaching, and she is especially interested in writing pedagogy. Brittany has been dedicated to improving her teaching practice by participating in CRLT workshops, working as a Sweetland Fellow, remaining versed in current research on the science of learning and teaching, and collaborating closely with other GSIs in her home department. Brittany enjoys riding her bike, spending time with her dog, cooking elaborate meals, and analyzing her two favorite sports: Big 10 Football and the Bachelor.

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Keanu Heydari

History

kheydari@umich.edu

Keanu Heydari is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of History. His research focuses on French and Iranian cultural, intellectual, and migration history. Heydari’s dissertation examines Iranian students, political dissidents, and intellectuals in Europe after the 1953 coup d’état in Iran. Heydari was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, and is an alumnus of the University of California, Los Angeles (B.A., History, French language minor, 2017). When he's not in the archives, he's often strategizing about pedagogy and thinking through research-based and critically reflexive teaching practices.

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Salman A. Hussain

Interdepartmental Program in Anthropology and History

salmanh@umich.edu

Salman A. Hussain is a doctoral candidate in the Interdepartmental Program in Anthropology and History. His research on return migrations from the Arab Gulf to Pakistan focusses on class, masculinity, and belonging. As a GSI he has taught two semesters each at Anthropology, and History departments, and served as a Graduate Student Mentor (GSM) for the History Department. He has also taught two semesters as an instructor of record at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Urban Studies program.

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LaTara McLemore

English Language and Literature

mlatara@umich.edu

LaTara McLemore (she/her) is a doctoral candidate in the English Language and Literature program at U-M, Ann Arbor. Her areas of focus are 19th and 20th century African American literature, read through and alongside literary history, Diasporic Theory, Black Feminist Theory, Afropessimism, and Afrofuturism. LaTara's dissertation project, currently titled Narrative Wild Cards: Characterization and the Reimagination of Selfhood after the Civil Rights Movement, examines how Black Women novelists in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s used characterization and narrative voice to explore opposing social imperatives towards self-actualization and communal life. As an instructor, LaTara's pedagogical interests center curricular development in the humanities; public humanities and community engagement; and anti-racist and equitable pedagogies, to foster accessible and responsive classroom environments. Outside of academia, LaTara spends time doing pilates, returning home to Chicago to visit her family, and trying out new cookie recipes.

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Irene Morse

Political Science

imorse@umich.edu

Irene Morse is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science. Her dissertation examines how immigrants' political norms change after moving from an authoritarian context to a more democratic one. Irene started working as a teacher in between undergrad and grad school, serving first as a math tutor at a high school near her hometown and then as an ESL and test prep instructor abroad. She then transitioned to working as a GSI at U-M, where she has taught in both the Political Science and Public Health departments. Irene's teaching practice centers on empowering students to take charge of their own learning process and fight limiting beliefs about who is intelligent/competent in the U-M classroom. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outdoors with her partner and their two dogs.

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Melissa Valerie

English & Education

vmeliss@umich.edu

Melissa Valerie is a Ph.D. student in the Joint Program in English and Education (JPEE). Her research interests include reading and writing pedagogies, developmental education, and teaching and learning in community colleges. At U-M, she has served as an Instructor of Record in the English Department Writing Program (EDWP). Before coming to the University of Michigan, Melissa taught first-year composition, developmental reading and writing, and adult literacy courses at City University of New York (CUNY). As an instructor, Melissa values a learner-centered approach to teaching and enjoys designing collaborative learning activities that help students engage more deeply with course materials. In her free time, Melissa enjoys reading, exploring museums, and taking long walks.

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Moniek van Rheenen

Anthropology

moniekvr@umich.edu

Moniek van Rheenen is a Ph.D. candidate in Linguistic Anthropology. Her dissertation research examines child language socialization and parenting trends in Indonesia, especially concerning the intersections of religious, gendered, ethnic, and national identities, in addition to the roles of technology and mass media. At the University of Michigan, Moniek has served as a GSI in the Anthropology department, teaching classes on language, culture, and childbirth, and is currently a GSI for the Masters in International and Regional Studies at the International Institute. She has taken many workshops through CRLT, leads the GSI working group for Anthropology, and facilitates a mentorship program between graduate and undergraduate students. As an instructor, Moniek enjoys helping students connect their lived experiences to the material and takes pleasure in designing creative classroom activities. In her free time, she enjoys knitting, cycling, and walking along the river with her rescue dog, Hazel.

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Zoe Waldman

History

waldmanz@umich.edu

Zoe Waldman is a Ph.D. Candidate in the History Department. Her dissertation examines treaty councils and congresses between Native American and Euro-American peoples across eastern North America in the eighteenth century. She has served as a Graduate Student Mentor for her department’s pedagogy sequence and has taught courses in History and American Culture. Zoe’s teaching practice emphasizes student-centered course design, antiracist pedagogy, and teaching for equity. She helped develop the History Department’s Digital Instruction Program to aid instructors in the transition to remote and hybrid teaching, and she maintains an interest in using digital tools to foster student engagement. Zoe is completing a Rackham Doctoral Internship at the William L. Clements Library where she uses her passion for doing history to help instructors teach with archival materials. She enjoys playing soccer and cooking.

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Veronica Cook Williamson

Germanic Languages and Literatures

vcwill@umich.edu

Veronica Cook Williamson is a Ph.D. candidate in Germanic Languages and Literatures and is also completing the Museum Studies Certificate. Her dissertation focuses on themes of migration in contemporary (post-2000) German culture and specifically the role of participation and collectivity as they figure in tension between activist initiatives and institutional cultures. Veronica has taught for four semesters at the University of Michigan, three of which were language courses where she was the instructor-of-record and one of which was a literature course where she led weekly discussion sections. She has also spent a year as her department’s Graduate Student Mentor (GSM).

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Ina Zaimi

Chemistry

zaimina@umich.edu

Ina Zaimi is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Chemistry Department. She graduated from the University of Michigan with her BS degrees in Biomolecular Science and English as well as her secondary education certifications in Chemistry and English. Humanizing chemistry incited her transition from teaching English to teaching chemistry centered around identity. Ina believes chemistry courses should affirm students’ languages, cultures, and identities as much as literature courses do. Ina supports the implementation of Writing-to-Learn assignments into chemistry courses. Ina’s research explores Writing-to-Learn-Assignments. Her research exposes that the rhetorical situation of the assignment shapes the impact of the assignment and, moreover, that the linguistic identity of the student shapes the impact of the assignment. Ina is a NSF Graduate Research Fellow. She serves as a Graduate Student Instructor Coach in the Chemistry Department, and she has served as a Graduate Student Instructor for general chemistry and organic chemistry in the Chemistry Department. When not researching or teaching, Ina enjoys reading and gardening.

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Hilary Zedlitz

Political Science

zedlitz@umich.edu

Hilary Zedlitz is a Ph.D. Candidate in political science focusing on American politics. Her research interests include political psychology, religion and politics, and survey measurement. At U-M, she has served as both a GSI and Instructor of Record in the department of Political Science for courses ranging from Introduction to Comparative Politics to Religion and Politics in the United States. Hilary received her B.A. in political science & Middle East Studies at the University of Arkansas in 2016. Before coming to the University of Michigan, Hilary served as an academic advisor for first-year students at her alma mater, and as an Assistant Port Chaplain in the ports of Everett, Tacoma, and Seattle, WA. In her free time, Hilary enjoys playing board games & listening to podcasts.