Internship under Dr. Lisa Taylor in her lab studying color vision, prey selection, and behavior in jumping spiders. My responsibilities include assisting graduate students with their experiments, working with ImageJ to analyze data, taking care of arthropods in the lab, feeding and taking care of the spiders, field collecting spiders, attending various outreach events such as the Lubee Florida Bat Festival, and more. I am honored to be working with Dr. Taylor and her prestigious laboratory (which was even featured in a David Attenborough documentary, “Life in Color”), as I am a huge fan of her work and of course of jumping spiders in general.

Teaching assistant working under Dr. Rebecca Baldwin and Dr. Phil Koehler in the introductory entomology class, Bugs and People at UF. This class is the one that convinced me to become an Entomology major, in my first semester, and I have been a TA ever since. This was my first introduction to outreach and it uncovered my passion for educating others about how unique and important insects are. My responsibilities as a TA include teaching lectures, grading assignments, creating exam questions, setting up class experiments, handling the arthropods in the extension petting zoo, and hosting review sessions outside of class.

Summer internship with a local beekeeper, Matt Davis, owner of Noble Nectar Apiaries in St. Petersburg. He and his wife work to relocate feral bees as well as produce honey and other bee products. My responsibilities included assisting with the honey-making process, melting wax into usable product, conducting hive inspections to prevent swarming, and performing general beekeeping tasks.

Volunteer position as an assistant beekeeper in the UF Honey Bee Lab. My responsibilities included performing routine hive inspections on the outreach colonies in order to prevent swarming during the spring months.

Semester-long internship working under Dr. Stephen Coombes and his graduate students in the Lab for Rehabilitation Neuroscience, where I scored and analyzed the force data of patient and control groups for research of motor control regulation with Lewy body dementia.

Nekton Surf Shop is a small family-owned surf shop that is owned by famous surfer Cory Lopez. The shop is focused on enriching the local surf, skate, and skimboard community, rather than tourism. It supports many small local suppliers, including my own brand, Ocean Rayz.

In addition to working at the cashier, my responsibilities include shop care, maintenance, and organization, customer relations, social media marketing, and care and distribution of rental equipment. I am also expected to have good knowledge of the area so that I can offer suggestions and advice to customers that are unfamiliar with the city.

Rare Americans is an independent Canadian alternative rock band, known for their animated music videos. They have released one animated musical-film, and are currently working on a second.

I auditioned and was chosen for a part in their second animated musical-film. I had to review a script, workshop different voices for the character, and record myself speaking and singing her lines. Rare Americans is my favorite band, so being on Zoom calls and hearing unreleased demo music was an honor. The film is still in progress.

The Clearwater Community Sailing Center's mission is to create affordable and accessible sailing opportunities. In addition to producing multiple Olympic athletes with its racing program, the sailing center also provides accessible lessons for children, seniors, and the disabled.

My responsibilities include helping to run summer camp, engaging with the members, assisting with international regattas, towing and cleaning motorboats, moving, rigging, and de-rigging sailboats, and repairing boats and trailers. I also assisted with the organization, Sailability, which gives physically and mentally disabled people the chance to learn how to sail. I've learned so much, from interacting with skilled sailors from across the world, to teaching new ones.

Carlouel Yacht Club is a small family-oriented beach club that hosts different events and activities throughout the year. It offers summer camps that focus on marine life and conservation.

My responsibilities included guarding, childcare, maintenance, event planning, cleaning, checking and maintaining pool chemicals, and docking boats. In addition, we helped with the responsibilities of the wait staff and responded to other emergency situations. I was also required to train for and earn my Red Cross CPR and water rescue certification.