James

Certified Tutor

I grew up just outside Seattle and attended Whitman College in Walla Walla. At Whitman, I majored in Environmental Studies and Politics, with Honors.

During my time there I worked in the writing center, where I helped students with assignments ranging from freshman papers to senior theses. I have a passion for writing—I wrote a column for the school newspaper and won an award for my senior thesis—and enjoy helping students shepherd ideas from brainstorming to finished paper. The best writing involves a strong injection of personality, and getting to know students through the creative process is a privilege.

I have tutored students in both the humanities and sciences. The winter after graduating, I received my EMT license and moved to Bozeman, Montana. While living in Bozeman, I was a ski patroller at Big Sky Resort. While patrolling, I discovered a fascination with medicine. After one more season patrolling at Big Sky and two at Crystal Mountain, I fulfilled prerequisites in Bozeman, took the MCAT, and applied to medical school.

My undergraduate education focused on the humanities and social sciences, but applying to medical school left me thoroughly acquainted with the hard sciences. The hard data and empirical knowledge of chemistry and biology were a definite change from the political theory I studied at Whitman. At Montana State University, where I took my prerequisites, I served as a peer instructor for physics classes. Just as I did at the writing center, I tried to get students to see the fun in physics, making their studies less of a chore and more of an inquisitive process.

Whenever it’s sunny and warm enough, my free time is spent rock climbing; I also volunteer with the Seattle Mountaineers as a youth climbing leader. After a winter storm, I can be found on the ski hill, hopefully waist deep in fresh powder. In the city, I am an avid but perpetually disappointed Mariners fan.