When I started my job at ACU, I knew that after my first two years when my department kept me off of committees, I would be required to start committee work.  To be quite honest, I was not looking forward to this happening. I grew up around people who joke that forming a committee was the surest way to make sure whatever you wanted to get done, didn’t get done.  On top of a preconceived idea of committee service, I could not figure out how I was going to fit in time to serve the University with the work I was doing with my students. However, to my surprise service to the University has become an integral part of my job that I usually enjoy.

One thing I really enjoy about this involvement is that it takes me out of my office, lab, and concerns about just my students and into the greater concerns of the campus.  Through service it is possible for me to gain a greater understanding of areas in which others are involved. I am amazed by all the exciting things that are going on at ACU and all the opportunities there are for involvement. Service is the area in which I feel I have grown the most since receiving tenure and promotion to associate professor. I believe part of this is due to learning to balance my teaching and research responsibilities a bit better. As I have gotten to know people in different parts of campus my opportunities to serve have also increased.

Most of my formal service is in the area of Service to the University. Until January 2013, this was mostly done through serving on a variety of committees. When I feel like committees are serving a task, I actually really enjoy committee work. I like being useful and helping others achieve their goals. Committee work is not always easy and can be frustrating, but overall I have found the vast majority of committees I have served on to be rewarding.

In January 2013, I began serving as Director of Undergraduate Research (DUR). This makes half of my job service to the University, and it is a job I love. As further detailed in the Service to the University page, in this role I am given the opportunity to work with both faculty and students all over campus. I get two great benefits from this position, first I get to learn about research that people are doing in many different fields, which is not only interesting, but helps me learn more about this world. The second is that I get to spend a lot of time celebrating achievements with people, and this is a lot of fun. I get to hear about papers published and presentations given. Then I get to brag on those successes. I also get to give awards such as Undergraduate Researcher of the Year and Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year.

I have also been able to provide service to my department. While I try to assist others in my department, I do not always feel that I give as much back to them as they give to me. The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, in my entirely biased opinion, is the best department on campus. I would not be the faculty member or person I am today if they had not helped shape me the last eleven years. I try to give back in small ways. My formal service roles in the department are details on the Service to the Department page.

My other service outlet is through the Minter Lane Church of Christ and mission trips.  I have been involved in teaching and working on committees at Minter. I have been able to go on mission trips to New Zealand and Guatemala. I love being part of a close knit church family. My service in this area is described on the Service to the Church page.

The other areas in which we can classify our service is in the community. This is an area where I would like to do more service, but between teaching, research, and service in the other areas, it just does not seem possible. This is a statement that makes me feel guilty, I’d like to do more. But one can only do so much.

The following pages contain evidence for service to the University, Department and Church.