Currently, there are two main things going on in my life, school and work.  I began working towards my Master of Science degree in Environmental Engineering in August of last year.  For my thesis, I am going to be developing a computer model to simulate groundwater flow in the Edwards aquifer.  This aquifer is the primary source of drinking water for the city of San Antonio.  The results of my project will be used to improve water management procedures.  Management changes are necessary because there is more water being pumped from the aquifer than recharged, which is causing water levels to drop significantly.

In March of this year, the Texas Department of Health hired me to help in their study of neural tube birth defects (NTDs) in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas.  In April 1991, three anencephalic babies were delivered during a single 36-hour period at a hospital in Brownsville.  Anencephaly is a type of NTD that is universally fatal because the baby is born with large portions of its brain and skull missing.  The NTD rate in the Lower Rio Grande Valley has consistently been higher than the national average.  I am performing a spatial analysis to determine whether living near potential pollution sources, such as industrial facilities or agricultural fields, increases a woman’s chances of having an NTD-affected pregnancy.

Before coming to Texas, I had spent most of my life in Colorado.  I was born in Denver and grew up in the Green Mountain area, which is one of Denver’s suburbs.  In high school, I was very involved in track and cross-country.  Running has been an integral part of my life since that time and I still run around 20 miles a week.  The Rocky Mountains are a familiar place for me.  My parents took me hiking quite a bit when I was little and I still enjoy being in the great outdoors.  In 1994, I hiked several of Colorado’s highest peaks, known as fourteeners because they are over 14,000 feet in elevation.

My undergraduate education in engineering began in the fall of 1988 when I moved to Tucson to attend The University of Arizona.  I had not been particularly serious about my education until college and I soon discovered that engineering demanded a great deal of hard work.  Early in that first year, I decided that I did not like being away from my support group.  As a result, I applied for, and was accepted to, The University of Colorado.  I liked Boulder much better and earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering in December 1992.

Before working at the Texas Department of Health, I had worked for two other companies.  While I was an undergraduate student, I worked as an intern for Amoco Production Company during the summers.  My internship allowed me to learn about various aspects of Petroleum Engineering.  One of the main objectives of my work was to increase the production of gas wells by implementing completions and repairs.  After graduating, I worked for an environmental consulting firm.  I authored several reports characterizing the waste stored at the Rocky Flats Plant outside of Golden, Colorado.  Rocky Flats manufactured triggers for nuclear bombs until 1989.  My work was aimed at determining the best way to dispose of the large amount of radioactive waste that had been generated since the plant opened in the 1950s.

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