Alyssa Wood Providence, RI | K-6, Science, 2016

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

Alyssa Wood has taught science at Sophia Academy for eight of her 10 years as a teacher. She teaches fifth through eighth grade at the all-girls middle school, covering life science, earth and space science, physical science, and engineering. During class, Alyssa engages students to make meaningful connections with experiences outside the classroom. Design challenges facilitated by guest engineers in the school prepared students for a visit to the engineers' company where students took the lead in creating functioning chairs made of newspaper and tape. Alyssa has presented at the National Science Teachers Association’s national conference on aligning curriculum to meet Next Generation Science Standards. She served as a mentor to master’s students in Brown University’s elementary education M.A.T program. Alyssa is a member of the education committee at Save The Bay, a local organization that pushes for the protection and improvement of Narragansett Bay. Over the past 10 years she has worked with UPP Arts, an organization that raises awareness around Providence’s largest natural freshwater pond and local watersheds. Alyssa earned a B.A. in cultural anthropology from the University of Michigan and a M.A.T. in elementary education from Brown University. She holds a Certificate of Eligibility for Employment in first through sixth grade elementary education.

• High-resolution version of the official portrait photograph
• Awardee holding Presidential certificate between Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer, Michael Kratsios, and National Science Foundation Director, Dr. France A. Córdova.
• High-resolution version of the teacher profile photograph

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