Education

TEDx speaker

Empathy rates among college students are declining at an alarming rate.  Students today are, on average, 40% less empathetic than they were in 1979.  This represents a serious empathy crisis that has the potential to have a profound impact, not just on our students, but on our country as a whole.  This short talk explains the neuroscience of empathy, examines why empathy is so necessary in a functioning society, and discusses why the arts, and arts education, may be the key to eliminating this empathy deficit. 

the Association of Florida College's Professor of the Year

As an instructor, Amber is dedicated to providing her students with affordable access to a quality education while using innovative teaching practices, clearly defined expectations, and effectively designed assessments to teach students relevant, engaging material that is representative of diverse cultures and perspectives.  This commitment to excellence and innovation resulted in her being selected as Lake Sumter State College's nominee for the Association of Florida College's Professor of the Year competition, which she won in November of 2017.

Credentials and course creation

Amber is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of South Florida, where she received a BA in Psychology and a minor in English literature before going on to Tufts University, where she earned a master's degree in Drama.  Following completion of her MA, she went on to complete an additional 18 graduate hours in English, which allows her to teach both English and Theatre at the college level.  She has also completed several education courses, including a course in Effective Online Teaching offered by The University of Oxford (England), in an effort to learn more about pedagogy and evidence-based best practices.

Over the last several years, she has had the pleasure of teaching the following courses: Composition 1, Composition 2, Advanced Argumentation, African American Literature, American Literature 1865-present, Introduction to Literature, Creative Writing 1, Creative Writing 2, Introduction to Theatre, and Introduction to American Cinema.  She has also supervised directed studies in screenwriting and managing children's theatre and taught conservatory classes in musical theatre, playwriting, and creating original work.