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Since being established in 1938, the National Association of Biology Teachers has been a volunteer-led organization, with members selecting the leaders of our community from our
community.
It is now time to elect the next leaders of NABT. In accordance with the Constitution & Bylaws of
the association, the NABT Nominating Committee has put forward a slate of candidates for the following NABT Offices:
Please take a moment to learn more about the candidates by reviewing their biographical profiles below.
All NABT members in good standing are eligible to participate in online voting using the link that was provided via email. Please contact the NABT Office if you did not receive your
ballot.
The entire process should take only a few minutes. All votes must be cast by Tuesday, October 3, 2023, in order to be counted.
Thank you for participating in this important process and for helping NABT continue to be the leader in life science education.
Science Teacher
Bloomington High School South
Bloomington, IN
Member Since: 2012
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience:
Honors & Additional Activities:
Personal Statement & Goals for NABT:
Through NABT, I’ve published lessons, facilitated professional learning (and learned a bunch myself!), connected teachers to explore new ideas in both science and education, recognized colleagues through our awards program, shared our members’ wisdom in ABT’s book review column, and befriended amazing educators from across the nation.
I’m excited for the chance to apply these experiences and connections to further NABT’s vision of fostering supportive and equitable professional and educational environments, especially as we continue to build new understandings of learner-centered pedagogy and fight for world-changing scientific literacy. I fundamentally believe that our biology and life science classrooms, no matter the age or level of our students, can and should be laboratories for discovery, creativity, community, and fun!
Starting about a dozen years ago, our NABT community pulled together, leveraging our enormous pool of knowledge and talent to transform how AP Bio is taught, even as we continued to make tremendous advances in 2-year and 4-year STEM education as well. My students and I have benefitted tremendously from this work, and I’m excited to give back by helping to lead NABT as we again address a pressing need for our organization and society at large – this time, supporting and celebrating the work of teaching on-level high school biology.
Being an active member of our organization has truly empowered me to provide engaging and rigorous biology education for my high school students, and it’s helped me stay energized and hopeful about our work. I hope you’ll support me in continuing to serve our community by electing me as your NABT president.
Director of Education and Outreach
Ragon Institute of Mass General, MIT, and Harvard
Cambridge, MA
Member Since: 2011
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience
Honors & Additional Activities
Personal Statement & Goals for NABT:
I became a biology teacher later in life, in 2009, after a long career in business. I had always had a passion for life sciences and biology. I started out as a biology major in college before switching to agriculture. Becoming a teacher was like finding a calling, to which I heartily responded.
As a new teacher, I was desperate for resources and support from other educators. I joined NABT right away. It was great to feel part of a larger organization, and I leveraged its resources as much as I could. I attended my first conference in 2017. I enjoy the conferences as a place to connect with new and old friends and share ideas about how to bring the world of biology to young people.
As OBTA Director, I was somewhat dismayed to learn how few Massachusetts biology teachers are NABT members. It seems that younger people and early service teachers do not recognize the benefits of participating in professional organizations. As President-elect, I would make it a priority to find ways to bring more teachers into our organization and to promote our craft to the public in general.
Former Professor
Nyack College
Bedford, NY
Member Since: 2006
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience:
Honors & Additional Activities:
Personal Statement:
I highly value service, which has played a significant role in helping me to overcome the challenges of being a minority in STEM. I firmly believe that action is more effective than words in promoting equity and diversity in STEM, and thus, I am committed to making a difference from within. It is also important to me to serve as a role model and voice for others like me who have struggled with the challenges of being a member of an underrepresented group, as we need to transform the STEM landscape to one that is more reflective of the general population. For more than a decade, I have been actively involved in initiatives aimed at transforming life science education at the institutional level as well as on a local and national scale. We need to prepare all students, regardless of major, to become informed citizens and to better understand the natural world around them.
As the current NABT Secretary/Treasurer, I value the opportunity to serve by using my affinity with numbers and analytical skills to benefit the organization, which has played a critical role in my development as an educator. I have always been fascinated with numbers so much that my undergraduate degree is in mathematics. NABT is uniquely positioned as a leader in transforming life science education, and I would be honored to be re-elected as Secretary/Treasurer.
Associate Professor
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Carbondale, IL
Member Since: 2006
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience:
Honors and Additional Activities:
Personal Statement:
The NABT is an organization that is near and dear to my heart. At NABT, I have found a community of kindred spirits dedicated to transformative biology education for each new generation of students. I have held a number of board positions within the NABT Four-Year Section and have quite a bit of managerial experience at the four-year university level, as well. Furthermore, I have served in a number of volunteer positions in my community, including church collection counter, community orchestra member, civic orchestra parent group chair, and most recently, secretary for the Southern Illinois Chamber Music Society.
I have been a member of NABT for over 15 years and have been a very involved member of the four-year section of the organization. Currently, besides serving each year as a poster judge and peer-reviewer for research presentations, I am taking a leadership role in developing the Four-Year Section Policies and Procedures Manual. I feel a responsibility to step up and support the organization at the national level and believe my strong organizational skills and long-term service to the organization make me well-positioned to contribute positively to NABT as a Director-at-Large.
AP and Honors Biology Teacher
Brentwood High School
Brentwood, TN
NABT Member Since: 2013
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience:
Honors & Additional Activities:
Personal Statement:
I attended my first NABT conference in 2013 as a graduate student. I was overwhelmed with the amount of people that loved biology as much as I did and were so willing to share and collaborate. I attended with Dr. Kim Sadler, my thesis advisor, who is very connected in the organization. Sitting in the Four-Year Section Meeting, I immediately learned that the experience I was having was only possible due to many volunteers who used their limited, valuable time to help with NABT.
I started teaching at Brentwood High School and, despite lack of funding, have made it a priority to attend the annual conference for 9 out of the past 10 years. I have presented several workshops and posters and gotten to know an amazing group of “NABTers” that I look forward to seeing every year. I have learned a great deal in my recent leadership roles and experiences as Department Head and TNABT Secretary that would facilitate me in this position. I would love to be further involved in NABT, to ensure its longevity, to make sure every Biology teacher has a place in the organization, and to help promote the mission of empowering educators.
Life Science Instructor
Mahtomedi High School
Mahtomedi, MN
Member Since: 2010
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience:
Honors & Additional Activities:
Personal Statement:
My experiences at NABT have shaped and reinforced my practice as a teacher and have challenged me to grow as a person. The network I have created through NABT has ensured that I have continually adapted my practice and changed my perspective toward creating a more equitable and meaningful experience for my students.
My experiences as a Knowles Fellow, HHMI Academy Member, 3DMD Model Teacher, and work through BSCS have helped me create a network of teachers, resources, and access to decades worth of experience that I hope to utilize to engage and inspire current and future members of NABT. As a Regional Coordinator, I want to support these same experiences and opportunities for other educators by promoting NABT, identifying new and creative ways of engaging existing members and recruiting new members within the diverse communities within my region. To accomplish this, I will identify successful approaches and initiatives in other regions and seek support from current relationships within my region and from within the NABT community to increase the sphere of influence and impact that NABT has on life science education in our country.
Biology Instructor
Olathe Northwest High School
Olathe, KS
Member Since: 2016
NABT Activities:
Additional Leadership Experience
Honors & Additional Activities
Personal Statement:
NABT has a history of building community amongst biology educators and providing resources to support teachers at all levels. My professional experience is well-suited to contribute to the growth and long-term success of NABT. After identifying teachers who lacked the confidence and training to implement engineering design into their classrooms, I collaborated with a colleague to develop weeklong workshops on engineering in middle school science classrooms. These workshops provided teachers with strategies to define engineering problems and design solutions in authentic contexts. In 2020, I was the organizer for the Kansas Association of Biology Teachers fall conference with a theme of social justice and meeting diverse student needs. The virtual conference featured presentations on undesigning the redline in Kansas City, culturally responsive feedback, and gender-inclusive teaching.
I have served as the Kansas OBTA director for three years, during which time we have received at least five completed applications per cycle. I have built community in KABT through annual field trips and informal gatherings while serving in leadership positions. These experiences will allow me to fulfill the responsibilities of the NABT Region IV Coordinator as I seek to grow NABT membership and engagement and meet the needs of teachers and students.
The National Association of Biology Teachers empowers educators to provide the best possible biology and life science education for all students.
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