Personal
I grew up in Champaign Illinois, where I graduated from Champaign Central High School. I was on the tennis team and in the marching band's color guard all four years of high school, including being section leader of the guard my senior year. I competed in scholastic bowl (for which I was named athlete of the week, partly as a joke), math team, WYSE, and science olympiad.
I was involved in the youth group and mission trips of Grace Lutheran Church in Champaign in middle school and high school. I was on the call committee that hired our new pastor and I represented the congregation to the regional synod assembly multiple times. I have taught vacation bible school several times. I am now the secretary of the church council.
As a student at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, I was involved off and on with the theatre and dance programs, depending on how my schedule allowed. Even when I am not formally involved with these activities, they are informally an important part of my life.
An incomplete list of things I value which may or may not be represented elsewhere on this website: {math, art, nature, science, dance, social justice, puns, theology, space, civics, photography, language, queer issues, typography, storytelling, political science, disability issues, psychology, astronomy, philosophy, comedy, intersectional feminism, literature, cats, music, podcasts}
My cat Lily, who I adopted from my undergraduate thesis advisor. She is sitting on top of some graphs I drew for said undergraduate thesis, which is her way of telling me she has checked them and they are error-free. (Thanks Lily!) Lily has traveled all over the country with me for work and for fun, and has lived on both coasts and the coast of Lake Michigan. Her favorite activity is shredding cardboard boxes.
This is your reminder to make sure you're registered to vote!
My friends call me Leemur, and say that I am eight lemurs operating a human suit. (The eight lemurs have names and personalities but that's a little too much Leemur lore for a photo caption.) Lemurs are my favorite animals. They are the cats of primates, like how owls are the cats of birds and foxes are the cats of dogs. Here is a photo of Momo, the delightful winged lemur from my favorite show, Avatar.