Operations Research & Engineering Management

Course Overview

Institution: University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), Edinburg, TX
Role: Graduate Teaching Assistant (Prof. Hiram Moya)
Terms & Courses:

• Spring 2020 & 2021 — Operations Research (Undergraduate, 21 students)
• Fall 2020 — Manufacturing Production and Control (Undergraduate, 18 students)
• Summer 2021 — Engineering Management (Undergraduate, 20 students)

Responsibilities

• Created and delivered targeted tutorial sessions and instructional video tutorials during the COVID-19 pandemic transition to remote learning
• Designed videos demonstrating multiple solution approaches (graphical, Gauss-Jordan, simplex, and other algorithms) so students could follow along at their own pace
• Implemented personalized feedback systems and held regular office hours
• Facilitated weekly recitation sessions; graded homework and exams

Context & Impact

These courses were taught during a uniquely challenging period — the full transition to remote learning during the pandemic. Students in South Texas often faced connectivity issues, language barriers, and economic pressures that made the shift especially difficult.

The video tutorial approach emerged from observing that students needed flexible, on-demand explanations at different levels. Students who had previously been struggling reported that the videos finally made the course material clear.

During this time I also became an informal peer mentor for the OR and Data Science courses — students frequently came to my (virtual) office, and Prof. Moya recognized this contribution publicly. I was awarded the Outstanding Student Award for Academic Achievement at UTRGV that same year.

Reflection

Teaching through a pandemic — in a border community with significant resource disparities — taught me that access and flexibility are not accommodations, they are the baseline. Every design choice I now make in a course asks: what does a student need to have a fair chance to learn this? That question began here.