Deborah Wasylik

Orlando, FL | 7-12, Science, 2003

What motivates you to contribute to excellence in STEM teaching?

For many years, science, technology, engineering and math existed in their own "silos" at the high school level. Each subject was taught as if the others did not exist. As the concept of STEM became more prominent and efforts were made to integrate elements of each discipline into the others, students began to see how these important areas were integral to each other and interwoven and embrace the idea of STEM.

What has been the most transformative moment that affirmed your impact on STEM education?

I first began to integrate STEM with a NASA sponsored Egg Drop competition. Students went through the entire STEM process to meet the criteria of the competition as they build their "eggcellent landers." We did not have any "engineering" courses at the time. Several of those first team members are now biomedical engineers, another is a physicist working on medical radiological equipment, one is an orthopedic surgeon who uses modern engineering to help with sports injuries etc. Developing that STEM mindset early on influenced their later career choices in STEM fields.

Using your platform as a Presidential Awardee, how do you hope to advance our nation in STEM?

I received my award in 2003 and have had many years to witness how the platform, and the credibility awarded to me as a PAEMST recipient has positively impacted my students and the way they understand and embrace STEM as the way of the future.

Biography

I graduated from Grove City College, Cum Laude with a BS in Biology. I entered Pharmaceutical Sales and it took me 20 years to find my way into the classroom, but I fell in love with educating students about STEM. In 2003 I was awarded the Presidential Award of Excellence in Science for Florida by President Bush and also became a National Board Certified Biology Teacher. The PAEMST allowed me to have access to amazing resources that propelled my students forward in their learning, and their achievements led to many personal awards including the Cristopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation National Life Science Educator Award, The Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators from President Obama, the Richard C. Bartlett Environmental Education Award, the PRISM Orange County (FL) Science Teacher of the Year, four STAR Teacher Awards from Spectrum Broadcasting and the Dr. Phillips High School Teacher of the Year. My students won the Regional Envirothon for 7 years in a row and the NASA Egg Drop Competition for 3 years in a row. I mentored our Eco-Action Team for 10 years working in co-operation with Educational Partner Universal Studios, Orlando, FL teaching students how to integrate their classroom science into real-world activities and problem solving. I was honored to be chosen as one of only 40 teachers as a NASA Endeavor Fellow, Cohort 2 in 2010 and earned by M.A. in STEM Curriculum and Instruction from NASA, Columbia College of Education (NYC) and Adams State University. I have continued to teach science at the high school level, transitioning to an online public school program for the past 4 years. Getting students excited about science still excites me after over 25 years in education!

The views expressed in awardee profiles are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NSF or the PAEMST program.