An Interview with Donald Knuth 1974 ACM Turing Award Recipient
STEM EDUCATION NEWS - Columbus State University€¦ · Brian was an Eagle scout and recipient of...
Transcript of STEM EDUCATION NEWS - Columbus State University€¦ · Brian was an Eagle scout and recipient of...
STEM EDUCATION NEWS
summer term of 2016 and entered their job placements in the fall.
This year was CSU’s inaugural year for the program; however, the
Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship has been operating for
several years in other states such as Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and
New Jersey. This program is open to college seniors, graduates,
and career changers who have majored in and/or have a strong
professional background in a STEM field and who demonstrate a
commitment to the program and its goals. The program at CSU
integrates coursework with clinical experiences in middle and high
school settings. Teaching Fellows selected for the program receive
financial support during the 15 month program through stipends and
partial tuition waivers. After completing their programs of study,
students earn a master’s degree in education. Immediately upon
graduation, students commit to teach for at least three years in high
need, low performing secondary schools. The aim of Woodrow
Wilson is to restore prestige to the field of teaching and effectively
create leaders of tomorrow.
FALL 2016
Photo Caption
Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellows & Summer Graduates
T he first cohort of students in the
program known as the
Woodrow Wilson Teaching
Fellowship completed their
program of study at the end of the
Pictured left to right: Top Row: Allen Clarkson & Marcus Stevens; Second row:
Mark Kagika, Althea Roy, Ashley Hunter, Brian Moler, & Brandon Hewitt; Front
Row: Autumn McMunn, Melissa Youngs, Blair Fine, Lauren Pace, & Kelly Colburn.
“Innovation starts in the
classroom. To ensure
that we have leaders for
tomorrow, we must invest
in education today.”
-Woodrow Wilson
Teaching Fellowship
Meet the CSU Fellows 2015-2016 Mark Kagika was born in Kenya, but he has
lived in Atlanta since 2005. He attended Duke
University (2009-2013) and earned a Bache-
lor of Science in Engineering (BSE) in Me-
chanical Engineering and minored in Music.
Mark completed his year long internship at
Marion County Middle
High School where he is
now teaching seventh
grade math. In his free
time, he enjoys choral
singing, swimming, and
reading.
Marcus Stevens is from
Senoia, Georgia. He at-
tended Georgia State Uni-
versity where he earned his
undergraduate degree in
physics. During his time in
the CSU program, he
worked at Troup County
High School. He is now
teaching math at East
Coweta High School. Marcus enjoys astronomy and
juggling.
Blair Fine
(pictured center)
is from Law-
renceville, GA.
During her first
years of college,
she attended
Shorter Universi-
ty on an athletic scholarship for soccer
and now enjoys being a coach. Blair is a
graduate of the University of Georgia
where she earned a degree in biology.
During her year long internship in the
Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship
Program, she was placed at Chattahoo-
chee County High School. Blair is now
working at Johnson High School in
Gainesville, GA, where she is teaching
Biology and Forensics.
Brian Moler hails from Cheyenne, WY and
earned his undergraduate degree from the
University of Wyoming in 2008 in mathematics.
Brian was an Eagle scout and recipient of the
State of Wyoming Excellence Award as well as
multiple academic
scholarships. During
his college career,
Brian served as a stu-
dent researcher and
spent time working with
cryptography and com-
puter distribution. After
earning his bachelor’s
degree, Brian worked as an applications engi-
neer at an international technology firm. Brian
is teaching math at Discovery High School in
Lawrenceville, GA, this year.
Althea Roy is
from the greater
Atlanta area.
She attended
Emory University,
graduating with a
BS in Chemistry
and a BA in Eng-
lish Literature. She worked in an astro-
physical chemistry lab and with the Divi-
sion of Animal Resources while at Emory
before graduating and pursuing teaching.
She taught special education resource
chemistry at Duluth High School before
becoming a Woodrow Wilson Teaching
Fellow. Althea was placed at Marion
County Middle/High School for her year
long internship and is teaching Chemistry
and Research Methods at South Cobb
High School this school year. During her
free time she enjoys running, hiking,
horseback riding, painting and baking.
Ashley Hunter is from Northport, AL. She grad-
uated from Auburn University in 2009 with a
degree in chemistry. She worked for Cott Bev-
erages for five years as an associate scientist in
product development where she crafted all sorts
of beverages from organic juices to carbonated
soft drinks. Ashley is an active youth leader at
Cascade Hills Church, where she attends. She
has been volunteering at Sound Choices Preg-
nancy Clinic for the past six years and currently
serves as a peer
counselor to women in
crisis pregnancies.
Ashley loves to eat,
and, therefore, runs a
lot. This year she ran
her first half-marathon.
She was placed at
Shaw High School in
Columbus, GA, for her year long internship and
is now teaching science at Jordan High School
in Columbus, GA.
A native of Forsyth, Georgia, Lauren Pace earned her undergraduate
degree in Biology at Georgia College and State University. Lauren
has special interests in cellular and molecular physiology, oncology,
and entomology. She did her year long internship at Westside High
School in Macon and is now teaching biology and human anatomy
and physiology at Mary Persons High School which happens to be her
alma mater. Lauren enjoys cooking, reading memoirs, and spending
time with family in her spare time. She also says that her favorite
parts about teaching are in providing opportunities to expand students’ worldviews through engaging lessons
and in building positive relationships with her students.
Meet the CSU Fellows (cont.)
Before coming to Columbus State University for the Wood-
row Wilson Teaching Fellowship, Allen Clarkson lived in Dar-
ien, GA. It is a small fishing town on the coast of Georgia.
He received his bachelor’s degree in Biology from Georgia
College and State University in 2014. He did his year long
internship at Hardaway High School under his mentor teach-
er, Victoria Andras. Allen is now teaching biology at
Peachtree Ridge High School in Gwinnett County, GA. In
his spare time he enjoys playing tennis and disc golf.
Autumn McMunn is originally from
Ardmore, AL. She graduated with a
degree in mathematics and second-
ary education from the University of
North Alabama in 2014. During her
time at UNA
she worked as
an undergrad-
uate research-
er, counselor,
teaching in-
tern, math
tutor, and sec-
retary. She was also a participant in
UNA STEM camp, a member of the
robotics team, and served as treas-
urer both for the honors student or-
ganization and Kappa Delta Pi honor
society. Autumn was the recipient
of multiple academic scholarships
throughout her college career and
was chosen as a Woodrow Wilson
Fellow in 2014. She completed her
year long internship at Chattahoo-
chee County Middle/High School and
is now a 7th grade math teacher at
Long Cane Middle School.
Kelly Colburn
is from Line-
ville, AL. She
graduated from
Auburn Univer-
sity in 2013
with a Bache-
lor's in Pure
Mathematics.
She participat-
ed in undergraduate research and co-
authored publications in Industrial and Organi-
zational Psychology. Kelly was a member of
Auburn University's Student Satellite Program
which was tasked to engineer a satellite with a
mission of gathering data on high altitude
thunderstorms that launched in 2012. She
became a teacher because she wanted to be
a part of the betterment of society via educa-
tion. Her focus and research area in education
is Inquiry-Based Learning. Kelly is continuous-
ly collaborating with experts from Auburn and
other universities in order to provide research-
based instruction that engages students. She
currently teaches Algebra II at Bainbridge
High School in Bainbridge, Georgia.
Melissa Youngs is a native of Columbus, Georgia. She completed
her undergraduate work at Georgia College and State University in
2015, where she majored in chemistry and worked as a research
assistant as well as chemistry lab and stock room assistant. Melissa
is a faithful community volunteer. She enjoys serving as a judge for
the local science fairs and spends much of her free time demonstrat-
ing and volunteering for elementary schools in the area. Melissa
completed her year long internship at Hardaway High School in Columbus and is now
teaching science there.
Brandon Hewitt is a professional engineer who has built
and owns several million dollar businesses. He describes
himself as an innovative self-starter who is highly motivat-
ed and works well in a team setting. Brandon’s company,
KHAFRA Engineering Consultants, which he grew from a
three member team with one office in Atlanta to a firm of
over 200 professionals with offices in Georgia, Alabama,
Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Dallas, and Indiana, has worked on several projects
including the Atlanta airport expansion, the Olympic Stadium, the Falcon stadium, the
Birmingham Barons baseball stadium, as well as several Atlanta public school renova-
tions and additions. He holds a BS in civil engineering from the University of Califor-
nia at Berkeley, a MS in structural engineering from Howard University in Washington,
DC, and a masters in business administration from Seattle City University in Seat-
tle ,WA. Brandon completed his year long internship at Carver High School here in
Columbus and is now teaching math at McNair High School in Dekalb County, GA.