Wendy Bartlett (2011)
Parkland Magnet High School
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School District
Wendy Bartlett has been an educator in the Winston-Salem Forsyth County School System for 13 years. Most of those years she has spent teaching mathematics at Parkland Magnet High School, although she took a respite from the classroom in 2003 to help the school implement the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program. In 2006, she returned to the classroom full-time and has enjoyed implementing Learning Focused strategies and the IB educational philosophy in her classroom. She is a National Board Certified Teacher and the 2008 recipient of the Marcellus Waddill Excellence in Teaching award from Wake Forest University. Wendy also works with the education department at Wake Forest University in their Master’s Teaching Fellows program.
Teaching mathematics through the use of technology is her true passion, and she loves to create engaging lessons using technology to help her students recognize how mathematics relates to them and their futures. Using funds from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, she hopes to purchase more technology for the mathematics classrooms at Parkland, and she wants to provide valuable staff development for herself and her colleagues to implement technology practices seamlessly into their mathematics instruction. She also hopes to create useful and meaningful resources for teachers in Forsyth County as the new Common Core Standards are rolled out in 2012 – 2013 school year.
Michelle Beard (2013)
Alleghany High School
Alleghany County School System
After graduating college, Beard worked as a chemist for eight years, mostly in the environmental field, as well as pharmaceuticals. She taught six years of chemistry in southern California.
From there, she moved and taught in Phoenix, Az. for five years and then moved to Alleghany High School in Sparta N.C. where she currently teaches all levels of chemistry and physics. She feels fortunate to have earned the CASMT and the PRISM grant from BWF as well as funding from DonorsChoose and is looking forward to using more technology within her classroom to make her students better prepared for college and/or work.
Michael J. Bowman Ed.D. (2011)
North Buncombe High School
Buncombe County Schools
Michael Bowman attended Augustana College, a small private college in Illinois, he was fortunate enough to take geology classes from Dr. Anderson and calculus classes from Dr. Marrow … both of whom taught him how to learn, connect ideas/topics across content areas, and to respect/love science and mathematics. After graduating from Augustana, he studied geophysics at Purdue University, earning a master of science degree. This was followed by several years of working within, then consulting for, the oil industry. In these roles he embraced the inter-connectedness of science and math in the context of real world problems, which had a profound impact on how he teaches.
While in the oil industry he was drawn to teaching and investigated alternate paths to teacher certification. He received his master of education degree from University of Houston. Dr. Bowman received his doctorate degree in educational leadership from Western Carolina University in 2007.
Dr. Bowman's honors include; national board certification (and renewal), the 2007 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, and the 2011 Burroughs Wellcome Career Award for Science and Mathematics Teachers.
Kimberly Clark (2013)
Charles D. Owen High School
Buncome County Schools
Kimberly Clark has been an educator in the Buncombe County Schools system for eleven years. She has enjoyed teaching mathematics at Charles D. Owen High School in Black Mountain for most of those years. In 2009, Kim took a break from the classroom to become Buncombe County Schools’ first high school mathematics coach. For two years she collaborated with high school and middle school mathematics teachers, and other instructional coaches to improve teaching and learning. She worked directly with the mathematics curriculum specialist to promote teacher leadership and provide professional development in preparation for the transition to the Common Core. She returned to her classroom at Charles D. Owen High School in 2011 in order to apply what she learned in her experiences as a mathematics coach and to create a model classroom reflecting the Standards for Mathematical Practice. Kim is a 2001 graduate of Appalachian State University and she attained her National Board Certification in 2007.
Kim is very passionate about ensuring access to high levels of mathematics for all students. She believes that the first step to ensuring this access is through transforming the way teaching and learning take place in the classroom. She plans to use Burroughs Wellcome Funds to create meaningful professional development opportunities and classroom materials for herself and her colleagues as they continue to work on this transformation as well as implementing the Common Core.
Michele Ellis (2013)
Grier Middle School
Gaston County Schools
Michelle Ellis is an 11 year teaching veteran. She started her career after she graduated Belmont Abbey College in 2002 with a degree in Elementary Education. After her rookie year as a 7th grade math teacher at York Chester Middle School, she transferred to Lingerfeldt Elementary School where she taught for nine years. During her tenure at Lingerfeldt, she developed an even greater perspective on how science should be incorporated more at the elementary level.
She became more involved in science education’s curriculum and policies. She was chosen to work on the 5th grade science curriculum unit development team for NCDPI and was chosen as a North Carolina Science Leadership Association Fellow. During her time in elementary school, she completed her AIG and middle school science certifications. In 2012, Michelle completed her Master’s in Education with a Specialization in Science K-8 from Walden University.
In the Fall of 2012, she transferred to Grier Middle School to become a 6th grade math and science teacher. She is excited to use her award to further STEM education at not only Grier but all Title One middle schools in Gaston County. Her goal is to share the funding so that a STEM learning network can be built among the schools. This way many economically disadvantaged students can benefit from the resources.
Christopher Fisher (2013)
Allenbrook Elementary
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Chris Fisher has taught at Allenbrook Elementary since 2009, when he was recruited to teach there as a part of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ (CMS) Strategic Staffing Initiative. At Allenbrook, and throughout his fifteen-year teaching career, his students have demonstrated high growth in math, due to a differentiated, engaging instructional style that incorporates songs, games, movement, technology, cooperative learning, hands-on activities, and problem solving. Fisher is also an innovative science teacher, guiding his students in inquiry and integrating science with reading, math, and the arts.
Allenbrook is a high-needs, Title One school and is a part of Project L.I.F.T, a five-year initiative intended to raise student achievement in the West Charlotte High feeder zone. A West Charlotte graduate himself, Fisher feels an especially strong connection to this project. Fisher is also a graduate of Davidson College, and earned a Master’s degree from the University of Florida. He is a National Board Certified Teacher, and in 2002 he was his region’s elementary Ben Craig Outstanding Educator Award Winner.
Fisher mentored hundreds of his colleagues through multiple roles within the CMS National Board Candidate Support Program. He taught seminars, facilitated study groups, organized retreats, managed the Reader (Candidate Feedback) Program, and coordinated the National Board Fellowship Program, which provided for collaborative professional development at Title One Schools. Fisher also served as Arts Integration Coordinator at Dilworth Visual and Performing Arts Elementary, where he facilitated staff-development, student collaboration with visiting artists, and the integration of the arts with the core curriculum.
In his spare time Fisher is an avid endurance athlete. He has bicycled across the United States and finished an Ironman Distance Triathlon. He also enjoys playing guitar, traveling, and spending time with his wife, two dogs, two cats, and young daughter.
Gregory Fisher (2011)
Mt. Tabor High School
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School District
Gregory Fisher is a mathematics teacher at Mt. Tabor High School in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School District. He graduated from Davidson College in 1994 with a B.S. in Mathematics. He earned his Masters of Education Leadership from Framingham State College in 2003 and his National Board Certification in Adolescent and Young Adult Mathematics in 2006.
Fisher has vast teaching experiences throughout the world. He taught ESL at middle schools in Japan and South Korea; high school mathematics in Mexico; and middle school mathematics in Brazil. In Winston-Salem, he has taught middle school Japanese, high school Physics, and various high school mathematics classes.
He is actively involved with the Winston-Salem Jaycees and fosters community service opportunities for his students. He also assists with the cross-country teams. He has also provided guidance and opportunities for his students to participate in national, state, and regional math contests.
He has facilitated workshops for his school district, North Carolina Honors and AP Conference, and for the North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics state conference. He works with Winston-Salem State University to mentor teachers across the state. He earned the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Secondary Mathematics Teacher of the Year in 2010. He plans to increase the community outreach programs and the resources for the district with the grant.
William Hendrickson (2009)
Warren New Tech High School
Warren County Schools
William E. Hendrickson is a science teacher at Warren New Tech High School in the Warren County School District. He began his career as a science teacher in the Edgecombe County Schools system in 1994 at Tarboro High School. Hendrickson graduated from East Carolina University in1994 with a BS in Biology. In 2000, he received a M.Ed. in Science Education from North Carolina State University as well as National Board Certification in Adolescent and Young Adult Science.
Hendrickson has a host of experience working with students in science competitions at the state, regional, and local levels. Most recently, he founded and supervised a team of students in the North Carolina Junior Engineering and Technology Society competitions in 2008 and served as a faculty advisor for the Youth Technology Corps in 2009.
Hendrickson is a member of the North Carolina Science Teachers Association, American Association of Physics Teachers, National Science Teachers Association, American Chemical Society, and has served as an evaluator for ETS Praxis Exam in Chemistry. He has received numerous awards, among them Hendrickson was elected Teacher of the Year for Warren New Tech HS (2009-2010), Teacher of the Year for Warren County Schools (2009-2010), and Nobel Educator of Distinction (2009).
Heather Kaiser (2011)
Pauline Jones Elementary School of Math and Natural Science
Cumberland County Schools
Heather Kaiser holds a B.S. in Elementary Education and Educational Ministry from Houghton College. Kaiser began her teaching career at Pauline Jones Elementary School in 1998 after moving from Southwestern NY to Fayetteville, NC. Over the years, Kaiser has taught children at almost every grade level from Kindergarten through 5th grade. In 2002, she received her M.Ed. in Educational Technology through Lesley University as well as achieving National Board Certification as a Middle Childhood Generalist.
After spending six years teaching 4th grade at two other Cumberland County schools, Kaiser returned to Pauline Jones Elementary in 2007, with a renewed ambition to make a difference in the lives of students who are most in need of caring and committed teachers.
Currently, she serves as the science lab teacher at Pauline Jones School of Math and Natural Science. In this role, she has been instrumental in the development of a community garden as well as gaining certification as a “green school”. Students benefit daily from the resources she has secured through grants from various organizations.
Kaiser is frequently sought after to provide both face-to-face and online staff development that spans a variety of topics such as using quality tools, infusing rigor, best practices for teaching science, incorporating technology and mentoring beginning teachers. She has recently begun creating “webinars” to assist teachers with the implementation of technology and replication of her teaching models.
With this award, Kaiser plans to further develop “Stimulating Science Simulations” that will engage students in learning about careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics through inquiry-based investigations embedded within role-play. It is her ultimate goal to share these units with other teachers via the Internet; making them easy to replicate in any classroom and on any budget.
Sonja McKay (2013)
Exploris Middle School
N.C. Charter School
Sonja McKay is a National Board Certified Teacher in Early Adolescence Mathematics. She earned a MEd in Middle Grades Mathematics Education from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She earned her undergraduate degree in Middle Grades Mathematics and Science Education as a Teaching Fellow at Appalachian State University.
Sonja McKay currently teaches seventh grade at Exploris Middle School, an innovative charter school in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. Before moving to Raleigh in 2004, Sonja taught sixth grade mathematics and science in Guilford County.
In 2010, Sonja McKay completed a two year Kenan Fellowship during which her students piloted STEM curriculum related to sustainability, consumerism, and packaging design. Sonja McKay’s work through the CASM Award builds upon her Kenan Fellowship work in design thinking. Over the next five years, McKay will work with in-service and pre-service teachers to incorporate design thinking into student experiences that are authentic, issue-driven, and project-based.
Stuart Miles (2011)
Evergreen Community Charter School
Stuart Miles is the 7th and 8th grade science teacher at Evergreen Community Charter School in Asheville. A graduate of the College of Charleston, Stuart began his career as a Teach for America corps member teaching 8th grade science in Helena, AR. For the last four years he has been teaching at Evergreen, where he also serves as a middle school team leader, coaches basketball, and is a member of the Board of Directors. In 2010, he completed his Masters Degree in Science Education from Montana State University. He was honored as the 2010-2011 North Carolina Charter School Teacher of the Year.
Miles’ classroom is a place where students create and learn with authentic audiences and purposes; he sets high standards and is committed to the success of all students. He has created place-based curricula focused on the land and culture of southern Appalachia, and is endeavoring to develop a K-8 water quality curriculum for teachers across the state with the support of the Career Award for Science and Mathematics Teachers.
Amanda Northrup, M.A.Ed. (2011)
Riverbend Elementary School
Haywood County Schools
Amanda Northrup has been a teacher at Riverbend Elementary School for eight years. She has spent the last six years as a fifth grade teacher. Her students enjoy an engaging learning environment that strengthens their confidence, competence, and enjoyment of mathematics. Her students regularly report a new-found love of learning.
Amanda's teaching extends beyond her students to her colleagues, as well. She is a mentor for college students, beginning teachers, and school colleagues. Through her work with Partners for Mathematics Learning, Amanda is known for leading dynamic mathematics professional development sessions for elementary teachers and administrators across North Carolina. She has also developed and presented a 4-day training module for kindergarten through fifth grade teachers called Building Mathematical Thinkers.
Amanda also serves as Program Chair for the North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics, organizing speakers for an annual conference attended by more than 2,000 teaching professionals. She is also the North Carolina winner of the 2010 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics Teaching.
Amanda has a B.A., summa cum laude, in education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and an M.A.Ed. from Western Carolina University. She is certified in elementary education and is a National Board Certified Middle Childhood Generalist.
Tamica Stubbs (2009)
Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology
Charlotte/Mecklenburg Schools
Tamica A. Stubbs was educated in urban Philadelphia, PA. Bequeathed from a single parent home and low socioeconomic status, she defied the social and academic circumstances of her childhood. After graduating from a magnet program at Franklin Learning Center High School, Stubbs attended Clarion University of Pennsylvania for six years obtaining a Bachelors and Masters in Science Education. She then became a Charlotte transplant where she began her teaching career as a general science educator at Wilson Middle School.
In 2001, Stubbs joined the E. E. Waddell High School Team and there was an avid attendee of professional development, skilled grant writer, and pioneer of new programs for students to extend their experiences beyond the high school biology courses that she taught. She utilized hands-on, minds-on and modular approaches to facilitate learning in the classroom and is a huge proponent of serving and educating the traditionally underserved populations within the science arena. Stubbs has secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding through various grant opportunities to benefit her students. She believes and is driven by the stance that all students should exit the classroom with not only a knowledge base in biology but a subset of skills that readies her students for biotechnology based careers. Stubbs is an advocate for her students and her son. She shares creative and progressive styles of teaching with hopes of inspiring students to be successful.
Stubbs now teaches at the Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology.
David C. Taylor (2013)
McClintock Middle School
Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District
David C. Taylor is a STEM elective teacher at McClintock Middle School, a Title I school in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District. He graduated from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania as a dual education major in 2006 and has been teaching in middle schools since then. Passionate about his own continuing education, Taylor earned his Masters of Middle School Science Education from University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2012 and is now applying to doctoral programs. At McClintock, Taylor serves as the Science Department Chair, the STEM Facilitator, and as a mentor teacher.
Taylor is passionate about STEM education and the opportunities it will offer his students. His class curriculum pulls from the best STEM resources available and focuses on engineering and robotics concepts ranging from bridges to programming. While he designed the class for middle schoolers, projects that students work on are typically at a high school level. He has received over a hundred thousand dollars in grants to help fund his ambitious curriculum, providing his students access to resources that are atypical in Title I Schools. Due to his success with curriculum development at McClintock, Taylor is sought out by other community organizations to help develop content for students. He has written curriculum for the Charlotte area science center, Discovery Place, and for Discovery Education’s 3M Young Scientist Competition. He was also a participant in the AP-2-K NC State Standards Conference, a conference intended to ensure the alignment of science curriculum through grade levels.
Taylor also has strong community ties. He has facilitated trainings for his school district, the UNCC Regional STEM Conference, and for smaller organizations seeking to increase access to STEM education. He is a board member of the UNCC STEM Center and of McClintock Partners in Education (McPIE) and is an active member of the Charlotte Area STEM Teaching and Learning Environment (CASTLE). He has also developed partnerships for his school with Charlotte Latin and Central Piedmont Community College. He is a two time CMS STEM All-Star award winner and a member of NSTA. Taylor also works with many students outside of school. He has coached local, regional and state champion FIRST LEGO League and Sumo-Bot robotics teams. Also, with the help of McPie, he has run STEM focused summer camps such as Ten80 Education and Camp Invention.
Claudia Walker (2009)
Murphey Traditional Academy
Guilford County Schools
Claudia Walker is a fifth grade elementary mathematics teacher at Murphey Traditional Academy in Guilford County. She has been in the classroom since 1992, is a National Board Certified teacher, and has a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Technology.
Walker’s dedication to her students and her profession has earned her recognition by her colleagues, students, and community. She is passionate about using technology in the classroom in order to engage students, and encourages her students to work in an environment of cooperation and collaboration in order to prepare them for their future in our ever-changing, technological world.
Jennifer Williams (2009)
Brevard High School
Transylvania County Schools
Jennifer Williams began her teaching career in Transylvania County after graduating from North Carolina State University as a member of the first class of North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. She has taught science and mathematics in Transylvania County for 12 years and is currently teaching chemistry and physics at Brevard High School.
Four years ago, Williams partnered with Mary Arnaudin, Transylvania County’s 4H agent, to create and direct the “It’s About T.I.M.E. to do Real Science” program funded by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Student Science Enrichment Program. During the summer/afterschool program, T.I.M.E. students engage in authentic environmental research into their own questions as they work with local scientists and teachers. Williams has also mentored two student teams as they competed in the science fair, advancing to the international level.
Williams states that her passion for engaging students in scientific research stemmed from her graduate work at UNC Wilmington. “I was fascinated by asking my own questions, searching the literature, talking to experts in my field, and designing and conducting my own experiments. I realized that I wanted my students to experience this fascination with doing REAL science.” With help from the Career Award, Williams plans to start a science research course during the school day at Brevard High School in 2011.