Teaching is one of the most important, satisfying, and demanding jobs. The Presidential Award validates the difficult, yet rewarding, work that I have dedicated my life to accomplish. Teaching science is not just about content knowledge and implementing lessons-it is more about understanding the nature of science, studying how adolescent minds learn and putting kids in the driver’s seat of the learning process. The award also means that my students are receiving the best education possible.

David Kujawski East Walpole, MA | K-6, Science, 2022

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

David Kujawski has been a science educator for 19 years, spending the last 16 years teaching sixth grade science at Bird Middle School. He previously taught middle and high school science at Boston Collegiate Charter School. David’s love of teaching goes beyond the classroom. His leadership at the local, state, and national levels has resulted in him providing professional development at local conferences and creating lessons for fellow educators as a BetterLesson Master Teacher Fellow and MA STEM Ambassador. He has been instrumental in driving meaningful changes to how science is taught in Walpole as a Curriculum Liaison and by having his instructional strategies highlighting the use of conceptual modeling published in the NSTA Science Scope Journal. David was honored to be selected as a 2013 Siemens STEM Fellow and attributes many of his accomplishments to the solid foundation of the NGSS developed during his tenure. David also assists districts in purchasing curricula materials as a writer with EDReports.org. David started the middle school LEGO robotics program at Bird Middle School and has coached students in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow and Invention Convention competitions. His leadership in science education resulted in him receiving the 2018 Norfolk County Science Educator of the Year award, the Goldin Award for Excellence in Education in 2016, and was a Massachusetts Teacher of the Year Finalist in 2015. David earned his B.A. in environmental studies from Dickinson College, an M.A.T. in middle school science education from Simmons College, and a STEM certificate from Teachers College Columbia University. He is certified to teach fifth through eighth grade general science and biology.

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