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My science education research interests are concerned with assessing and improving how students understand biological concepts and apply scientific principles, especially concepts and principles related to ecology. I work at both the undergraduate and grades 6-12 levels. My approach to this research employs both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis methods. I enjoy working on large-scale, multi-faceted collaborative projects that seek to answer transformative and often complicated research questions. Thus, some of the projects I work on involve many collaborators from across the country. My goals as a science education researcher are to make discoveries that can be used for improving pedagogy and assessment in undergraduate biology education and for informing the development of national science standards and practices for K-12 education. My ecological research bridges community and ecosystem ecology to explore how plant communities and soils respond to external factors such as intensive herbivory, nutrient inputs, emerging infectious diseases, and climate change. The model system that I work on has shaped and integrated the questions that I pursue. I study the impact of introduced bubonic plague on both urban and rural black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) communities. My field research involves mostly observational studies across space and time gradients. I conduct greenhouse experiments to further explore the mechanisms underlying the broad patterns I observe in the field. Much of my research is situated in and around urban Denver, making it easily accessible to UC Denver student researchers.