Teaching Consultants Program
The CCTL’s Teaching Consultants (TCs) are a group of trained and experienced graduate students dedicated to promoting excellence in graduate student teaching at the University of Chicago. TCs support the mission of the CCTL by conducting Graduate Teaching Consultations (GTCs) for graduate students across the University of Chicago.
These consultation services provide graduate students a confidential and non-judgemental space to explore teaching issues and challenges. TCs meet with graduate students in all disciplines to discuss issues of course design, alignment of assignments, student motivation, student participation and engagement, or any teaching area in which the instructor is hoping to develop their knowledge and practice.
In addition to providing GTCs, Teaching Consultants have the opportunity to develop their own skills as educators and peer mentors through training and regular meetings, and to engage in a community of pedagogues with other TCs.
Eligibility
Students in any PhD or terminal postgraduate program at the University of Chicago may apply, provided that they:
- Are in good academic standing
- Have demonstrated interest and/or experience in higher ed teaching
- Can participate in a quarterly training and one additional quarterly meeting
TCs are hired and trained on a quarterly basis and compensated for their work. TCs may choose to work throughout the school year, or work as many quarters as their academic schedules allow.
Applications
Applications for Autumn Quarter Teaching Consultants (2024) are now open. To apply, please complete an application and submit a brief statement of interest and resume/CV using this form. Applications must be received by Wednesday, September 25. Applicants can expect a response by Tuesday, October 1. TCs are eligible for quarterly reappointment subject to satisfactory performance.
Past Teaching Consultants
Anna Berlekamp
Anna is a PhD student in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. Her research focuses on the archaeology of Bronze Age Turkey, with specific interests in landscapes, movement, and daily life. While at the University of Chicago, Anna has served as a teaching assistant for various courses in the NELC department and as a Writing Intern in the Humanities Core. Anna is looking forward to helping post-doctoral and graduate student instructors develop inclusive and active student-focused classrooms.
Yue Deng
Yue is a PhD candidate in Paleobiology who studies the dynamics of two clam groups waxing and waning over 400 million years’ history. With their own research motivated by strong affection for the critters, Yue teaches Evolutionary Biology and Earth Sciences as interpretations of data guided by intertwining cultural and societal influences instead of stone-cold facts. Yue has served as an instructorial TA for Evolution since sophomore year of college, as well as for Environmental History of the Earth, Ecology, and Ancient Greek for shorter periods. Committed to enhance learning experience for undergrads university-wide, Yue hopes to ignite more conversation on teaching practices through teaching consultation.
Amanda Doyle
Amanda is a 3rd year PhD candidate in Geophysical Sciences broadly interested in the drivers, paleontological record of, evolutionary processes establishing, and modern signature of contrasts between Northern and Southern Hemisphere faunas. She's utterly fascinated by anything related to any sort of animal (extant or extinct) and is incredibly keen on sharing neat animal facts with others. In her spare time, she enjoys reading all sorts of books, watching bizarre movies, going to museums, and watching documentaries.
Betty Kim
Betty Kim is an MFA candidate in the Department of Visual Arts focusing on photography, textiles, and mixed media. She has experience teaching photography to adults and seniors online and in person. And while most of her background has been in civil service and arts administration, she has enjoyed mentoring college students for over a decade. Betty looks forward to collaborating and learning with other graduate students to develop their teaching pedagogy style.
Darren Kusar
Darren Kusar is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures with a focus on early modern Italian literature. His research interests include early modern poetry, opera, voice studies, Renaissance demonology, phenomenology, and wonder tales. In his dissertation, Image, Voice, Text: Staging the Diabolical in Early Modern Italian Opera, he examines the production and reception of visually and aurally staged diabolical characters in a culture obsessed with spiritual threats. As an instructor of record, Darren has taught numerous Italian language courses and a self-designed course on early modern Italian epic poetry and opera. He has also served as a CA in both the Italian and Music departments.
Carlos Medina
Born and raised in Panama, Carlos attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he received his BSE in Materials Science and Engineering in 2019. During that time, he started researching polymers, with a focus on polymer systems for biomedical applications. He decided to pursue a PhD in Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago, where he currently studies zwitterionic polymers for fouling-resistant materials under the supervision of Prof. Matthew Tirrell. Carlos is passionate about education and science communication, and looks forward to honing his teaching skills as well as helping peers interested in the field. In his spare time, he enjoys watching soccer, cooking, trying out new restaurants, and exploring new neighborhoods.
Anne Monique Pace
Anne Monique Pace is a PhD candidate in Music History and Theory at the University of Chicago. She received her BA in 2017 from Columbia University, where she studied Music, English Literature, and Creative Writing with an emphasis on constructions of gender, race, and sexuality in performance. Her dissertation will focus on commedia dell’arte figures in theater, opera, and ballet at the turn of the 20th century, probing the intersections of clowns/clowning and changing conceptions of the human subject. She is a lyric coloratura soprano and dances Argentine tango.
Lauren Peterson:
Lauren (she/her) is a PhD Candidate in the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. She enjoys working and teaching in interdisciplinary spaces and holds master's degrees in public health and social work and a bachelor's degree in public policy. Prior to returning to graduate school, Lauren worked as a policy analyst for international and federal government agencies. Outside of school, she enjoys exploring Chicago neighborhoods and spending as much time as possible outdoors.
Maggie Sandholm
Maggie is a PhD student in the Department of Philosophy. Her research focuses on the nature of self-consciousness. She has served as a teaching assistant for various courses in Philosophy of Mind and Ethics, and was awarded the Wayne C. Booth Graduate Student Prize for Excellence in Teaching in 2022. Maggie enjoys sharing the excitement of philosophy with her students and cultivating a positive and inclusive classroom in which they feel excited and empowered to learn. She looks forward to working with fellow educators on how to implement collaborative and student-centered learning practices.
Emily Silver
Emily Silver is a PhD student in the Integrative Neuroscience Program at the University of Chicago. She is a member of the Social Psychophysiology and Neuroendocrinology Lab where her research focuses on behavioral and psychophysiological responses to early life stress. Outside of the lab, Emily loves to volunteer at Comer Children's Hospital, play IM soccer, and explore new Chicago neighborhoods.