Receiving this award took me on a professional and personal journey of a lifetime. I took on leadership roles with ATOMIM and NCTM Affiliate Services and the Board of Directors, met and worked with NASA scientists, and leveraged classroom resources and knowledge to better teach my students. I traveled extensively to speak at conferences and share and collaborate with a fabulous professional community. I felt valued and honored to be a mathematics educator from a rural state.
Marshalyn Baker has been an educator for 39 years, retiring from the classroom in 2012. Half of her career was as a self-contained classroom teacher of grades four through six; the other half was spent as a middle school mathematics teacher at Messalonskee Middle School/Williams Jr. High, where she taught when she received the PAEMST award. Marshalyn's passion was building a mathematics team and guiding mathletes as they competed regionally, statewide, and nationally. She also worked with NASA scientists to build enriching curriculum with a strong mathematics focus. Career highlights were going to Space Camp and taking part in educational initiatives at several space centers. She had the opportunity to witness three space launches. Marshalyn took on several leadership roles. She was president of the Association of Teachers of Mathematics in Maine and was the first from her state to be elected to the NCTM Board of Directors. She has also been a board member for the Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance. Since her retirement, she has worked for the National Assessment of Educational Progress as an assessment coordinator and has been a field coach for the Maine Mathematics Coaching Project. She is now working with PAEMST as Maine’s Alumni Representative. Marshalyn graduated from the University of Maine at Orono with her B.S. in elementary education; M.S. in literacy; and C.A.S. in mathematics, science, and technology. Marshalyn received the 2001 Jacqueline Mitchell Mathematics Educator Award and has been recognized by NASA as an educational contributor to Expedition Earth and Beyond. She and her science partner received a Growth Initiative for Teachers grant for their integrated project, “Is Our School Sick?” She has spoken at state, regional, and national conferences.
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