Statement of Academic Progress, 9/15/00

I had to write this statement as part of my Long-Range Plan, which is required during the sophomore year as part of declaring a major.  I declared myself a biology major, and was planning to concentrate in genetics.  (Now, it's either genetics or cell/molecular biology, can't decide.)  This statement is just a reflection on my academic life, what I've done, and what I want to do.

Why the Devil does DevilNet Need an Office?

DevilNet is an online community center for Duke students, developed by Duke students, and viewed by Duke students.  I thought about joining in my freshman year, and was actually part of it for some time.  However, not much got done during the time of my membership.  This letter was perhaps my last attempt to get something jumpstarted before I left.  Now, DevilNet seems to be doing just fine (by no means because of my help).  I don't even know if they finally have an office.

Letter to Dr. Bob Behringer

I wrote this to Dr. Behringer after my year of Mentorship at NCSSM had ended.  Although I greatly loved my research experience with granular materials, I would probably be busy during my freshman year with classes, and didn't think I'd have time to devote to physics research.

Letter to Dr. Bob Guenther

Turns out that I did have time to devote to physics research, and I ended up spending much of my freshman year studying optics for use in an optical coherence tomography project that Dr. Guenther supervised.  This was definitely a highlight of my freshman year.  However, I discovered that I should probably be spending a bit more time with my classes, and so I wrote this really sad letter to Dr. Guenther, to explain why I needed to cancel physics research for the rest of the semester.

Letter of Recommendation for Dan Howell

Dan Howell was one of Dr. Behringer's several graduate students, who worked most closely with me during my year of Mentorship at NCSSM.  He now has his Ph.D, since he was a hard-working and very capable student when I knew him.  I was asked to write him a letter of recommendation for him to keep in his portfolio, since he wanted to be a teacher after he got his Ph.D, and needed lots of good letters of recommendation.  So, I tried to do my best job here.  It was the best I could do, since he helped me so much in learning about granular materials physics and nonlinear dynamics.

Letter to Donors of the Reggie Howard Scholarship, 2/27/00

During my freshman year, I was asked to write a thank-you letter to the donors of the Reggie Howard Scholarship Fund.  No problem, since I had lots to be thankful for.

Letter explaining my freshman year roommate problems to the Housing Administration

This was the primary cause of my "first semester of hell."  This was probably the biggest amount of injustice I've ever experienced on this campus.  I thought this letter put forth a very straightforward outline of what my problems were, and I hoped that the Deans of Housing would see that I was only trying to get my work done and live a good life at Duke.  It was the biggest slap-in-the-face experience I've probably ever had, since the Deans of Housing sided completely with my roommate, and I was left with the two options of "working to get along," or leaving my room permanently.  Seeing how I was on the verge of going mad, I chose the second choice on the same day of my meeting, leaving my roommate with a single room to herself.   If ever there was a worse experience I've had at Duke, this is it.  So I've put this on the web for all ye prospective Duke students to see, as my sole form of revenge upon this university.

Addendum: After my first semester at Duke, I moved to Alspaugh Dorm after finding a new roommate. I would have moved earlier if it weren't for people telling me I should "stick it out" and "get used to things." My GPA dropped to an abysmally low value during that first semester, but in the comfortable environment of my new room, I was able to sleep, study, and make the Dean's List of Distinction (highest 10% of grades at Duke) for my second semester. It just goes to show how living circumstances can make a *huge* difference in how well I do academically.