Sandra has a Masters of Science degree in Earth Science, specializing in structural geology, geochronology, and tectonics from the University of Waterloo. She has been employed since 2006 as an undergraduate educator, teaching mineralogy, petrology, and introduction to Earth’s history, among other courses, in the B.Sc. Geoscience program at Vancouver Island University. Her experiences in the field and the classroom have inspired many questions about the ways geoscience education translates into geoscience practice. She is particularly interested in whether there may be ways to improve students’ experiences of geoethics in their education. This curiosity led her into the PhD in Educational Studies program at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where she is currently a doctoral candidate. This project will form the basis of Sandra's dissertation research.

​

In addition to her interests in geoscience and education, Sandra has also been a life-long visual artist. She typically creates mixed media paintings integrating collage elements and earth materials. For Sandra, investigating research questions with both artistic and academic methods opens up new possibilities of understanding.