Psychology Teaching Assistants
PSYC 441: Theory and Practice of Academic Psychology explores pedagogical techniques that are supported as effective for teaching psychology in the college classroom. The course also focuses on career development, preparation for graduate school, and professional responsibilities in academia. As an experiential component, students in the class serve as teaching assistants for the mass-enrollment PSYC 100: Introduction to Psychology course. In this role, they practice presenting course content, plan and facilitate review sessions, and hold a weekly student consultation hour to support the Intro Psych students' success.
Scout Abel
Major: Psychology and Criminal Justice
Hometown: Tioga, PA
Career Goal: Graduate School for Forensic Psychology; Behavior Analysis for the FBI
What you enjoy about psychology: All of the different career paths that you can take
What you enjoy about BU: How gorgeous the campus is in the fall
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: Never forget that it is okay to change your career path
Rylee Burdge
Major: Psychology
Hometown: Burnham, PA
Career Goal: Child Psychologist (in some way…maybe a school psychologist?)
What you enjoy about psychology: I love learning about how/why people experience life in such different ways.
What you enjoy about BU: I have always liked how close everything is on campus, and it is especially beautiful in the fall. As cliché as it sounds, our psychology department is the best too!
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: Teach the information to someone else as a way to study; if you can teach it, you know it!
Hecenit Cruz
Major: Criminal Justice & Psychology
Hometown: Lancaster, PA
Career Goal: Forensic Psychologist
What you enjoy about psychology: I enjoy the fact that there is always something new to learn!
What you enjoy about BU: I enjoy meeting new people and having the chance to be so involved on campus!
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: It is okay to not know what’s next for you, take your time & trust the process! Don’t rush through college because it already goes by so fast! You’ll be done before you know it.
Alyssa Fields
Major: Psychology
Minor: Health Communications
Hometown: Bucks County, PA
Career Goal: My career goal is to become a marriage and family therapist.
What do you enjoy about psychology: I enjoy learning about how individuals think and why they think and behave in a certain way.
What you enjoy about BU: I enjoy having a community at BU and having different opportunities while being here.
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: My advice would be to live in the present and enjoy your early college experience instead of hyper-focusing on the future and missing out on what’s right in front of you.
Maxwell Firth
Major: Psychology
Minor: Black Studies
Hometown: Berwick, PA
Career Goal: Pediatric clinical psychologist
What do you enjoy about psychology: As a psychology student, I am fascinated by how the human mind works and develops over time. I am also very interested in different mental health disorders.
What you enjoy about BU: Bloomsburg is a great place for a well-rounded college experience. Here I have had some amazing classes, met my closest friends, and I get to see the beautiful campus every day.
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: Some advice I would give to students beginning at Bloomsburg is to not be afraid to do difficult things. Every step forward will likely be scary, but it’s the only way to grow as a student and as a person. Also, always ask for help when you need it!
Kaleigh Johnson
Major: Psychology and Criminal Justice
Hometown: Bucks County, PA
Career Goal: I would like to research behavioral neuroscience in people who have committed crimes.
What do you enjoy about psychology: I love seeing the things we learn in class out in the real world! It's so fascinating to break down different aspects of a person and relate it to our field.
What you enjoy about BU: The best part about Bloomsburg is the beautiful campus, especially during the fall and spring. It is so nice to study outside and hang out with people on the quad.
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: The biggest piece of advice I would offer is to not stress yourself out too much. You will have both bad days and good days, bad grades and good grades–don’t let it affect you further than it’s meant to. All you can do is do your best, so don’t get discouraged. Learn from your mistakes, and apply what you learned for next time.
Kayla Keenan
Major: Psychology
Minor: Child Life
Hometown: Delaware County, PA
Career Goal: I aspire to become a Child Life Specialist after graduation.
What you enjoy about psychology: I became interested in Psychology while in high school, and throughout each year of school, I have become more invested in it as I enjoy learning why we as humans do what we do.
What you enjoy about BU: Bloomsburg has become one of my favorite places through my years here. I absolutely love the atmosphere of this town, and being at a small school is an aspect I am fond of. I have made amazing friends as well as incredible experiences that will stay with me forever.
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: My advice to future students would be not to procrastinate, take the best notes you can, study with others in your classes, and overall enjoy the time you have here because it flies by. These will be incredibly memorable moments in your life, and I suggest you enjoy it while you can.
Shelbie Krumlaw
Major: Psychology
Minor: Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Communication Studies
Hometown: Ashland, Ohio
Career Goal: Child/Family Counselor or Gender Specialist
What you enjoy about psychology: My favorite part about psychology is definitely the real-life applications of what we learn in class. Learning something from a lecture and/or from a reading, and then seeing it play out in your daily life is such a fun and interesting experience!
What you enjoy about BU: Something that I personally enjoy about Bloomsburg is that it has both a small-town atmosphere, where there is a strong sense of community, along with great opportunities and resources that often come with larger universities! And of course, the campus is so beautiful, especially in the fall season!
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: My biggest piece of advice that I would give to any student of any major would be to consider studying abroad! The Global Education office works very hard to make it as painless and affordable as possible, and if you are thinking it may be something you want to do before or after graduation, now is definitely the time to do it!
Haley Zapotosky
Major: Psychology
Hometown: McAdoo, PA
Career Goal: I would like to graduate with my master’s degree in psychology and become a licensed therapist or counselor.
What you enjoy about psychology: How broad of a field it can be and how many career options are available.
What you enjoy about BU: How beautiful of a campus Bloomsburg is and how home-like it has become to me!
If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself as a student new to Bloomsburg?: Time management is key! College can become very overwhelming very quickly – it is so important to invest in time management tools, such as an academic planner! It is very easy to fall behind. Don’t get discouraged!
