About Me
Vitals
Age: 21
Citizenship: United States
Current Residence: Berkeley, California, USA
Academic Experience
- University of California at Berkeley - Berkeley, CA [2001-present]
- Stockdale High School - Bakersfield, CA [1996-2000]
In December 2004 I am graduating from the University of California
at Berkeley with a self-designed Bachelor's degree in Education and
Astrophysics. I am currently completing my Senior Honors Thesis on "Self-Directed
Education".
In 2000 I graduated from Stockdale High School near the top of my
class. Stockdale High is a public high school in Bakersfield, California.
I attended public schools in primary and junior high school.
Work Experience
- Sylvan Learning Center [2004-present]
- Deer Crossing Wilderness Camp [2003-present]
- Space Science Laboratory [2002]
- Camp Quabbin [2000]
I currently work part-time at Sylvan
Learning Center in El Cerrito, CA, where I work one-on-three
with students age 7-18 to help them learn basic math, algebra, and
geometry. At Sylvan I have gained experience tutoring math with
dozens of different young people, each of whom demands a unique
approach.
During the summer I instruct windsurfing and work as general camp
counselor at Deer Crossing,
a wilderness summer camp in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California.
At Deer Crossing I have learned how important it is to have a positive
attitude, a proactive approach to life, and to give children both
freedom and responsibility as they grow up. Most importantly, I have
gained direct experience working, playing, and living with young people
in an intense, 24-hour environment. In addition to windsurfing at
Deer Crossing I instruct lessons in kayaking, improv theatre,
first aid, and cooking. Summer 2003 was my first season at Deer Crossing
and 2004 will be my second.
During my second year of college I worked as a research assistant
for Dr. Laura Peticolas at the UC Berkeley Space Science Laboratory.
I aided Laura in analyzing satellite data to study the physics of
the aurora borealis (Northern Lights). My work involved computer programming
and advanced physics.
In summer 2000 I worked at Camp Quabbin, MA, a summer camp for special
needs and developmentally disabled youth. Working at Quabbin was an
experience in tolerance, patience, and compassion.
Other paid positions I have held include:
- Food Manager for my student cooperative. Responsible for ordering
all foods for 127 students. $60,000 budget.
[2002, 2004]
- Store Manager for The Chocolate Cow ice cream & candy
store [2000]
- Web site designer, freelance
- Babysitter, friends and family (two younger brother & two younger sisters)
Volunteer Experience
- Diablo Valley School [2004-present]
- Democratic Education at Cal [2003-present]
- Science tutoring in Berkeley public schools [2002-2003]
- Undergraduate astronomy tutoring [2002-2003]
I am a volunteer at Diablo Valley School (DVS), a Sudbury model
school in Concord, CA. At DVS students spend time as they see fit
- they are given the freedom and responsibility to direct their educations.
The students and staff run the school democratically at weekly meetings.
Volunteering here has given me first-hand experience in working with
strong, self-directed kids and seeing how a freedom-based educational
philosophy works in real life.
At UC Berkeley I am a board member of DeCal (Democratic Education
at Cal), a prominent student group that promotes student-initiated
courses and democratic classrooms. I have developed strong leadership
and teamwork skills working with DeCal, and I have deepened my understanding
of democratic education.
For two semesters I tutored science one-on-one and in large groups
at two Berkeley public school classrooms, one 5th grade and one 8th
grade.
For one semester I tutored UC Berkeley students for an undergraduate
astronomy class. Our goal as astronomy tutors were to insist that
students understood concepts before looking for answers.
Short Autobiography & Travel Experience
I was born in Tiburon, California in September 1982 and spent a large
part of my young life in the San Francisco bay area. At age nine I
moved to Bakersfield, CA, where I lived until 2000. Attending public
school throughout my life, I graduated near the top of my class from
Stockdale High School. I was admitted to the University of California
at Berkeley and spent four years studying various subjects including
physics, math, astrophysics, education, and environmental studies.
I am graduating from UC Berkeley in December 2004 with a self-designed
Bachelor's degree in Astrophysics and Education.
I first ventured outside of the United States in a solo 1-month trip
to Chile inspired by my father. I lived with a family in a small town
for 3 weeks and spent the final week snowboarding in the Andes. Aside
from a few other short trips to England, France, and Canada, my other
significant international experience was a 5-week tour of Europe I
took with 4 friends during Summer 2002. We ventured from Paris to
Prague and back, going deep into Italy and as north as Amsterdam.
This trip inspired in me a love of the Mediterranian above all other
places. I plan to return to Europe soon, hopefully through live-in
tutoring.
Personality
I think of personality in terms of the Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator (MBTI) breakdown of Introvert/Extravert, iNtuitive/Sensor,
Thinker/Feeler, and Perceiver/Judger. I am an Introverted iNtutitive
Feeling Perceiver: an INFP. Click
here for a good description of common
INFP traits, habits, and goals.
As an introverted intuitive, I love to ponder big ideas
& possibilities, and I work well with abstract systems. My detail
orientation is improving as I focus on it more and more.
As an intuitive feeler, I have a strong sense of what
a child is going through, and I am able to talk and work with young
people on their level. I value harmony, peace and friendship in relationships. Safety is a number-one priority.
In addition to my natural inclination as a feeler, I have well-developed thinker skills - I am good at deconstructing logical problems
(math and science) and considering the impersonal, objective
sides of issues.
Finally, as a perceiver I naturally approach life in
a spontaneous fashion, and I am driven by inspiration. I can work
for hours or days straight on a single project if it inspires me.
I avoid repetitive tasks as much as possible (which isn't always possible,
of course).
Goals
My long term goal in life is to open an all-ages school
founded on the principles of freedom and leadership. I imagine
it bordered by rolling green hills and oak trees for shady reading.
Over the next ten years, my goals are to:
- Hike from Mexico to Canada on the Pacific Crest Trail.
- Spend time adventuring with each of my younger siblings.
- Work as an international live-in homeschooling tutor.
- Work at a democratic free school.
- Apprentice myself to a European chocolatier.
In the short term, my numerous goals include:
- Swim for 60 minutes non-stop, four times a week.
- Avoid white flour and refined sugar products.
- Produce a movie for the local student film festival.
- Write my senior honors thesis on self-directed education.
Interests
My favorite fiction includes:
- Tender is the Night - F. Scott Fitzgerald
- On the Road and The Dharma Bums - Jack Kerouac
- Siddhartha - Herman Hesse
- One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
- The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
I have always been very interested in computers. I
built my own Windows-based computer in 2000 and it still runs like
a charm today. I have designed many web pages using HTML and online
databases using PHP and MySQL. My current project involves streamlining
the website and database system for DeCal (a
UC Berkeley student group).
In the outdoors I enjoy day hiking, overnight backpacking
(especially lightweight backpacking), windsurfing and kayaking (when
at Deer Crossing), and snowboarding (Canada is the greatest).
I enjoy filming & photography and I have made a few short movies
that were shown at local student film festivals.
Cooking has been a passion of mine ever since I came
to college and started living in the student cooperatives. For two
years I was a head cook, preparing 6-course dinners for
40-100 people on a weekly basis.
My specialty is vegetarian dishes, and my favorite food to cook is
California-style Mexican cuisine.
Other activities I enjoy include playing frisbee, writing,
swimming, and reading lots of books.
