About

Jenna's Journey

In 2010 I was in grad school and struggling with stress, test anxiety, and imposter syndrome. One would feed the next in a self-perpetuating cycle until my imposter syndrome became a self-fulfilling prophecy and I failed my qualifying exam. I had to make changes if I was going to make it through to graduation. At the suggestion of a friend I tried yoga. Through the practice I learned to accept what I cannot control, that perfection is a journey not a letter grade, and that my limitations aren't roadblocks but opportunities for creativity. After switching to a different graduate program, a once a week practice turned into a few times a week and four years later, I successfully defended my PhD!

After my defense, I earned a fellowship to work as an engineer at the Jet Propulson Lab (JPL) where I continued my practice weekly. After a few years at JPL, I found my current job as an assistant professor at the University of Southern Indiana and moved back home to southern Indiana. It took me several months after the move to find a place to practice, but once I did it helped me to deal with the pressure of being a new faculty member.

Then in February 2020, just before the pandemic changed our way of living, I was diagnosed with a very rare brain tumor, called an acoustic neuroma growing on the nerve that connects hearing and balance to my brain. Fortunately, the tumor was not cancerous and thus not life-threatening, but it was life changing. Because of its growth rate and location, I needed surgery to remove it. As a result of the surgery, I lost all hearing in my right ear and I am working to regain my balance. In my attempt to improve my balance, I decided to take the journey from AN warrior to yoga instructor. Exactly 5 months after my surgery I completed my 200 hour RYS teacher training at Vida Asana in Costa Rica and am now a yoga registered teacher (RYT) with Yoga Alliance.

In addition to my yoga teacher certification I received a BA in physics with a minor in dance and performance studies from UC-Berkeley and a PhD in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Arizona. I am currently a full time assistant professor of engineering and physics at the University of Southern Indiana. Prior to teaching yoga and engineering and physics classes, I taught ballet with the Caltech Ballet Club for over a year while I was employed as an engineer at JPL.