Alicia Pressel

Saint Johns, FL | 7-12, Science, 2023

What motivates you to contribute to excellence in STEM teaching?

Youth are incredibly creative and unafraid to dream BIG! Their inspiring sense of pride in place gives me great hope in our leaders and changemakers of tomorrow.

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

Connecting youth to moments of exploration and discovery helps them develop a global mindset, empowering youth to drive change in their local community through innovative solutions. STEM education spans multiple disciplines and provides those moments of discovery to channel positive change across geographic spaces, places, and peoples.

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

Building community connections into STEM education helps youth relate science experiences to real world applications, and in turn encourage youth to be willing to explore new ways to solve challenges in their own communities - thereby expanding the value of STEM education in our nation while structuring stronger and healthier communities far into our future.

Biography

Ali Pressel is in her 20th year of sharing science education with youth, in both formal and informal learning spaces. Ali is currently the Education and Outreach Coordinator at the St. Johns River Water Management District, partnering with educators across Northeast and Central Florida to bring water education to youth of all ages. Ali previously taught 9th-12th grade environmental sciences and Advanced Placement Environmental Science in the Academy of Environmental Sciences at Creekside High School in Florida and developed a 4-year career academy program in place-based science. She spent earlier years teaching at Fruit Cove Middle School in Florida and at Westminster High School and North Hampstead High School in Maryland. Ali passionately engages youth in scientific discoveries as they explore natural ecosystems in their local community. She has extensive experience in place-based education through community citizen science initiatives and she actively incorporates geospatial mapping technologies into learning experiences. Students experience real-world scientific connections from guest speakers and learn directly from scientists and community partners as they build career connections. Ali is a National Geographic Explorer focused on broadening community science initiatives for all youth in Florida, across the United States, and in international experiential learning spaces. She actively participates in the Florida TeachersLEAD Network, is a Lindblad/National Geographic Grosvenor Teacher Fellow, a Global Learning Fellow, and serves on the Advisory Board for the National Earth Science Teacher Association. Ali earned a B.S. in environmental sciences and human ecology from Rutgers University and an M.S. in chemical and life sciences from the University of Maryland.

High-resolution version of the teacher profile photograph

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