It is an honor to be among such an extraordinary group of teachers dedicated to providing meaningful learning experiences for their students. Accomplishing this confirms the importance of integrating science across content areas so that students understand that everything is connected and that we can make a difference! This award recognizes my deep commitment to providing quality, hands-on, inquiry-based science education for all my students. I feel blessed to receive this prestigious award.

Stephanie Nowak Mentor, OH | K-6, Science, 2020

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

Stephanie Nowak is an elementary educator and has served for 28 years. She teaches for Mentor Public Schools, currently teaching all fourth grade subjects at Fairfax Elementary School and prior to that, third grade for 23 years at Rice Elementary School. She has worked with the Ohio Department of Education as a leading member for both the Science Model Curriculum Development team and the Science Regional Leader Network. Stephanie is passionate about integrating the process of science to promote collaboration, problem solving, and creative thinking across subject areas. It is important for students to understand that everything is interconnected. Our actions have results. Those actions have the power to impact our future. Stephanie has presented on a variety of topics at national- and state-level conferences. Most recently, in response to educating during the pandemic, she presented a webinar “The Tale of Two Teachers” for the Ohio Department of Education, showcasing her creation of a digital notebook to organize, engage, differentiate, and assess students using a specific learning platform. She has presented at NSTA conferences on Blending Literature and Science with Technology, Evidence Centered Design, Integrating Technology into the 5 E Learning Cycle, and project-based learning (white nose syndrome in bats). Stephanie holds a B.A. in childhood education from Bowling Green State University and a master's degree in curriculum and instruction from Ashland University. She is working on her administrative license at Ursuline College. She has her master teacher endorsement. Stephanie was honored with the Lubrizol Science Teacher of the Year in 2014 and the Excellence in Teaching from Mentor Schools in 2008. She is certified to teach kindergarten through eighth grade.

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