There is a new element in the science office this semester, and her name is Dr. Maria Ter­Mikaelian. Substituting for Dr. Kennedy after her pregnancy, Dr. Ter­-Mikaelian is at BHSEC from February to the beginning of April. She studies auditory neuroscience and animal behavior, including animal communication through sounds and varying processes, which makes her a good fit for teaching the college program's biology course.
Dr. Ter-­Mikaelian has come a long way before ending up at BHSEC. She was born in Russia and moved to Canada when she was 12, where she later completed her undergraduate degree. She then received her PhD from New York University (NYU) and stayed in New York ever since then. Dr. Ter-­Mikaelian did her post­-doctorate at Columbia University. In fact, she was at Columbia at the same time as Dr. Kennedy, but they never crossed paths.
Some of Dr. Ter-­Mikaelian's research has centered on monkeys, which she described as challenging and fun. "I would teach the monkeys how to do a task in a sound proof room," she explained. She did this as a way to test their auditory sensitivity and study their brain processes. She also learned how to make realistic monkey calls from working with them so intimately. Other than working with animals, Dr. Ter­-Mikaelian has eight years of previous teaching experience; she was recently a visiting term professor at Barnard College. Having taught college students, she was excited to teach at BHSEC. "I never taught in this environment before, with younger students but advanced material," she said. However, she is happy to see how well BHSEC students accept, question, and think about the college­-level concepts.
While Dr. Kennedy enjoys her time at home with Lucy, Dr. Ter­-Mikaelian is enjoying her time at BHSEC. "I'm excited to get to know the students, but that will make it hard to leave," Dr. Ter­-Mikaelian explains. She says that she will be sad to leave because two months is a very short amount of time, just enough to get to form connections with students. BHSEC students will be sad to see her go as well, but look forward to getting to know her while she is here.