Kudos and announcements
OESE Kudos
OESE congratulates Rachel Welch, the PAEMST State Finalist for the 2022 Elementary (Grades K-6) cycle. Welch has spent 14 years in education and is currently the kindergarten-second grade STEM teacher for Glenpool Public Schools. She was Glenpool’s 2018 district Teacher of the Year and has received many awards for teaching and innovation and Carrie Akins and Heather Voss, the PAEMST State Finalists for the 2023 Secondary (Grades 7-12) cycle. Akins has spent 21 years in education and is currently an 8th Grade science teacher for Edmond Public Schools. She was also selected as a 2018 Elementary-level PAEMST State Finalist, has presented at the Space Exploration Educators Conference in 2020 and 2023, and is affiliated with the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Teacher Innovator Institute since 2019. Voss has spent 22 years in education and currently teaching Honor Chemistry, AP Physics 1, AP Physics C: Mechanics, and PLTW Digital Electronics in the Computer Science Academy at Francis Tuttle Technology Center (Rockwell Campus). Voss is also a National Board Certified Teacher and current president of the Oklahoma Science Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Association.
OESE Congratulates Rebecka Peterson, the 2023 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, named National Teacher of the Year for 2023.
Rebecka has taught high school math classes ranging from intermediate algebra to Advanced Placement calculus, for 11 years at Union High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Amid a difficult first year of high school teaching, she found the “One Good Thing” blog. She credits daily posting there to helping her recognize the beautiful and positive experiences occurring in her classroom, which inspired her to stay in the profession. She has since contributed 1,400 posts to the blog. As Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, she has visited teachers across the state to highlight their important work through the Teachers of Oklahoma campaign.
OESE congratulates Caryn Vaughn, named a 2023 Fellow by the Ecological Society of America. Caryn is George Lynn Cross Professor, University of Oklahoma, Department of Biology and Oklahoma Biological Survey
Caryn Vaughn is a stream ecologist interested in the connections between biodiversity and ecosystem function, and how properly functioning ecosystems benefit humans. Most of her work has focused on unionid mussels, a highly diverse and imperiled fauna that serve as hotspots of biological activity in many rivers.
OESE congratulates Jason Wang and Samantha Bacon and their teachers Mark Wang and Donna Deason for winning the OESE award at the 2022 Oklahoma State Science and Engineering Fair. Jason attends the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics and Samantha attends Grove Middle School.
OESE congratulates Jeanetta Sims, dean of the UCO Jackson College of Graduate Studies, and Luis Montes, professor of chemistry at UCO, who have been named 2022 DaVinci Fellows.
The award recognizes higher education faculty whose creative, innovative accomplishments have made a significant contribution to their academic disciplines.
Montes was recognized for his approaches in transformative learning. As a recipient, he will receive a $1,000 grant to apply toward his fellowship project titled “Identifying Characteristics of High-quality IVE/Synchronous Virtual Courses.” This project will launch a series of workshops sharing examples of interactive video/synchronous virtual courses.
The DaVinci Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to nurturing the arts, sciences, humanities and education in Oklahoma.
OESE congratulates the Oklahoma winners of the $25,000 Milken Awards. Science teacher Tamarah Danzy and principal Aubrey Flowers received the national Milken Educator Award at Tulsa Union on April 8.
Danzy teaches science at the Union Eighth Grade Center in Broken Arrow, within the Union Public Schools district. She has been teaching for 14 years, serves as science department chair and coaches the varsity cheerleading squad.
“Tamarah believes in every one of her students and motivates them to master essential skills needed in science and engineering,” said Hofmeister, who surprised Danzy with the honor this afternoon. “She prepares her young learners to be ready for college and career through engaging, hands-on lessons that they can build on in high school, and she challenges them to research and discover on their own. Tamarah is a model teacher in Oklahoma. We are so delighted that she has been recognized as a Milken Educator.”
OESE congratulates the two Oklahoma teachers who have been named recipients of the prestigious Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). PAEMST is the highest recognition in the nation a K-12 mathematics or science educator may receive for outstanding teaching.
Jennifer Donwerth of Edmond Public Schools (mathematics) and
Karla White of Bethany Public Schools (science) will receive $10,000 from the National Science Foundation as part of the PAEMST honor.
Jennifer Donwerth teaches second grade at Centennial Elementary in Edmond Public Schools. She loves incorporating technology into student learning. Donwerth has been teaching for 15 years.
Karla White teaches fifth grade at Earl Harris Elementary in Bethany Public Schools. White is a Science Improvement Fellow for the Oklahoma Excel Program, Oklahoma Science Teaching Association President (OSTA) and has been OSTA’s Oklahoma Elementary Science Teacher of the Year.
OESE congratulates Regional University/Community College Teaching winner Dr. David Bass, professor of biology, University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond at the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence 35th Academic Awards.
A leading expert in aquatic invertebrates, Bass teaches courses ranging from beginning biology and ecology to invertebrate zoology and aquatic entomology. He also coaches UCO’s competitive sailing team.
“Even though Bass has been a professor at UCO for 35 years, he still works as if he were a green Ph.D. starting his first semester of teaching,” said Dr. Wei Chen, dean of the UCO College of Mathematics and Science. “He treats each class as a new adventure, constantly revising lecture notes, adding new contents and experimenting with new delivery approaches.”
OESE congratulates Caryn Vaughn, a George Lynn Cross Distinguished Research Professor and Presidential Professor in the Department of Biology and Oklahoma Biological Survey, for her selection as a 2021 Society for Freshwater Science Fellow.
“SFS Fellows are those who have led, shaped, and inspired the field of freshwater science,” said Alonso Ramirez, president of the Society for Freshwater Science. “These scientists have been recognized for game-changing contributions to our field.”
“They have pushed the boundaries of freshwater science in research, teaching, policy, and management and have advanced our understanding in these areas,” he added. “They have also built and supported networks of scientific collaboration, increasing the capacity and reach of our science.”
OKLAHOMA EVOLUTION/CLIMATE CHANGE NEWS–MARCH 2023
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OKLAHOMA EVOLUTION/CLIMATE CHANGE NEWS–JANUARY 2023
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