NC STEP Profile: Making a Difference through Science

[This post is the seventh in a series featuring the eight teacher interns in the 2012-13 cohort for NC STEP — the North Carolina STEM Teacher Education Program, an initiative of NC New Schools. These eight interns will complete the program this summer and are seeking teaching positions in North Carolina public schools for fall 2013.]

I am a student teacher, a naturalist and an avid outdoorsman. A graduate of North Carolina State University, I earned a dual degree in fisheries science and wildlife management and a minor in environmental science. During my time at NCSU, I learned about biological sciences and its processes, conservation, and the natural world and its phenomena. I knew through my childhood and schooling that I wanted to be in the science field where I could make a difference.

After graduating from NCSU, I was employed by Axiom Environmental Incorporated, a stream and wetland restoration company. Our main focus was restoring streams and wetlands to their natural state to encourage a lively and sustainable environment. Through my work in the field, I was able to see how my work made a difference in the stream ecosystem and environment as a whole.

Through NC STEP and NC New Schools’ Design Principles and Common Instructional Framework, I have learned about the innovative processes of teaching and inquiry-based learning. Again, I have been given another chance to make a difference in the field of science, but through a totally different avenue.

This program has given me an opportunity to open young minds to science and its processes and make a difference in teaching. I have performed my internship at Hillside New Tech, a high school school that focuses on the innovative new tech design and project-based learning. My experience there has given me the opportunity to learn the best teaching practices and principles with a focus on student learning and understanding. Through my experiences in this program and working in the field of science, I feel that I can make a difference in teaching science and spark a passion in young minds to the natural world we live in.