Teaching and
mentoring
Training scientists to reason across biology, data, engineering and translation.
Proposed courses ↓Philosophy
Students learn biomedical science most deeply when they use evidence to make consequential decisions.
My goal is not only to pass on content, but to help students ask tractable questions, choose methods that can genuinely answer them, separate observation from inference, and communicate uncertainty. I organize teaching around a recurring cycle: build a minimal conceptual model, interrogate authentic data, design the next experiment, defend the decision, and revise in response to critique.
Vaccine and immunotherapy development needs researchers who connect molecular mechanism with cell states, population diversity, quantitative analysis, biosafety and manufacturability. In class and in the laboratory I make those connections explicit, so students see both how knowledge is generated and how it can be translated responsibly.
Proposed courses
Graduate courses and modules I am prepared to teach or co-teach.
| Course or module | Core learning outcomes |
|---|---|
| Advanced Immunology and Host-Pathogen Interactions | Integrate innate, adaptive, mucosal and tissue-resident immunity; interpret protection and immunopathology. |
| Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics | Select antigens and platforms; define immune endpoints; evaluate safety and translational readiness. |
| Data-Intensive Immunology | Analyze flow cytometry, serology, bulk and single-cell RNA-seq and TCR data; recognize confounding and overfitting. |
| Experimental Design and Reproducibility | Develop hypotheses, controls, power logic, analysis plans and transparent research records. |
Capstone: Vaccine Design Studio
Interdisciplinary teams receive an emerging-pathogen profile, define a target product profile, select antigens and a platform, plan immune and safety endpoints, anticipate failure modes, and defend a development decision before a mock review panel.
Learning design
Short lectures, followed straight away by authentic cases.
- Concept-to-application alignment through cases from vaccine trials, outbreaks, immunogenetics and therapeutic development.
- Active collaboration with rotating roles such as Methods Lead, Data Skeptic and Synthesis Reporter.
- Authentic assessment on unfamiliar flow cytometry, sequencing, ELISA or neutralization data, methods critique and experimental design.
- Transparent rubrics, low-stakes checks, structured peer review and chances to revise.
- Research ethics, biosafety, data stewardship, authorship and societal context built into every course.
Errors and negative results are discussed without blame, but with accountability to improve systems and protect integrity.
Laboratory practice
Mentoring
High expectations, clear structure, psychological safety and growing independence.
I start by learning each trainee's goals, preparation and preferred way of receiving feedback. Together we write an individual development plan with scientific milestones, skill objectives, communication goals and career exploration, reviewed at least twice a year.
- Weekly one-to-one meetings focus on decisions and obstacles; laboratory meetings alternate between primary data, literature and project strategy.
- A written project charter defines the question, responsibilities, milestones, data location, authorship expectations and contingency plans.
- Trainees present early and often: chalk talks, works in progress, abstracts and manuscript clubs.
- Career development is individual, across academic, biotechnology, data-science, clinical-research, policy, writing and entrepreneurial paths.
| Career stage | Mentoring emphasis |
|---|---|
| New graduate student | Reproducible technique, literature synthesis, controls, data hygiene, biosafety and concise oral updates. |
| Advanced doctoral student | Project ownership, prioritization, manuscript and proposal writing, mentoring and collaboration. |
| Postdoctoral researcher | An independent niche, funding strategy, team leadership, peer review, networking and transition planning. |
| Research staff and undergraduates | Role clarity, competency-based training, meaningful ownership and paths to advancement. |
Record and inclusion
At UC Irvine I have been primary supervisor for more than 30 undergraduate researchers in the Bio 199 program.
I also mentor postdoctoral, postgraduate and clinical-observer trainees. My mentees come from many national, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and many have gone on to medical or dental school. That experience taught me that inclusion comes from making expectations explicit, offering several ways to take part, and giving everyone fair access to feedback, sponsorship and real scientific ownership.
In an international graduate community I set respectful discussion norms, use anonymous mid-course feedback, accommodate different routes into quantitative and experimental work, and make sure group work does not reproduce invisible hierarchies.
Measuring effectiveness
Teaching is judged by performance on transfer tasks, quality of experimental reasoning, peer observation and structured student feedback. Mentoring is tracked through milestones, reproducibility, presentations, manuscripts, fellowships, lab-climate feedback and career outcomes.