Laura has a Ph.D. in environmental fluid mechanics from the University of California, Davis. Laura is a lecturer in the Civil, Environmental & Sustainable Engineering Department at Santa Clara University and serves as a faculty associate specializing in assessment for the Collaborative for Teaching Innovation. In this role, she focuses on helping academic programs design and implement plans for assessing student learning outcomes.
Laura also remains active in research with two main areas of focus. The first focuses on how climate change impacts food and water security for underserved communities. Laura’s focus in this area is on helping existing not-for-profit organizations worldwide develop more resilient practices for producing more food with less water. Laura’s research also examines teaching practices that provide equitable learning and increase diversity in engineering disciplines.
Laura also currently serves as the chair of the Faculty Affairs Subcommittee on Lecturers and Adjuncts, a group committed to creating policies and procedures that promote respect and equity for lecturers at SCU.