My mentoring goals are to meet each student at their level of research development/experience and help them move to the next level of becoming an independent researcher, to assist them in exploring their interests and help them develop these interests into a career path, to create an inclusive and encouraging learning environment, and to establish an equitable, caring, and supportive relationship to ensure each student reaches their own potential. Essential mentor characteristics needed to accomplish my goals are being honest, compassionate, and respectful. Effective mentoring requires being accessible, a good listener, and committed to high-quality interactions.

I work closely with each of my students. I have weekly scheduled meetings with each of my researchers to discuss their progress, and to encourage them to discuss both their successes and their concerns in the research. Especially for young researchers, I set up a comfortable and growth-mindset environment in our meetings (and in the group). Few students have exposure to education research during their undergraduate career unlike other lab-based research, which they see some in their laboratory courses. Hence, I strive to show them via talks, literature, and working with my group what conducting research on teaching and learning entails. I also show the career opportunities a person with a Ph.D. in STEM education research has (such as an instructor in various environments, a tenure-track faculty member with a research group, a faculty developer, a high-school teacher, or a researcher) by including collaborators with these careers in our weekly group meetings and projects.