Major: Biology

Minor: UFTeach Science

Graduate: 2015

I was born and raised in the Orlando area, graduating from high school with the idea that I would be pursuing the sciences but in the field of medicine, going onto become a doctor.

Arriving at UF preview I actually laughed at the idea of joining the UFTeach program when my mom brought it up jokingly. My dad has been a high school teacher for nearly twenty years and he and my mom had “higher” hopes for me than to become a teacher. It wasn’t until I decided to take the Step 1 class for UFTeach, mostly to explore my options as medicine had lost its appeal to me, that I realized my desire to teach. It was then that I discovered I was capable, and had some skill, at teaching others. I then decided to pursue the minor, as well as career path, with full commitment.

Very early on in the process of finding out my motivation to teach, I remembered a teacher that I had in high school who was one of the science teachers. Having gone to a small school he actually taught many classes of science, including chemistry and physics. Teaching the students was not the highest priority on his list, and I saw many students entirely lose a taste for the sciences because of his classes. They had written it off as something that is boring, and unattainable. I was one of the few that managed to get through his classes and still desire to pursue science, having been predisposed to find the subject incredibly interesting.

My goal now is to become a high school science teacher who is not only able to teach the subject well, but to also open students’ eyes to the wonders of science, and make it accessible to them. As well as to properly prepare them for sciences of the college level, encouraging learning and making it something that some will even realize they enjoy because of a class that I teach. I have seen students in the classes that I have taught so far really find enjoyment in the lessons that I have taught, and I hope to better myself and my own abilities so as to continue teaching effectively.

My internship this summer is at the Florida Museum of Natural History. I am going to be working with the summer camps that the museum has for elementary age students. Currently I am arranging the guest speakers that will be visiting the camps for the summer, and later will be working with the teachers who are working at the camp.

Noyce for me has provided a community of fellow students who are pursuing common goals in desiring to become better teachers. This community has and will continue to be a place where ideas and experiences can be shared.