Meet Our Scholars
Elena
Cox
Background:
I was born and raised in Russia. I have lived in the US
for many years and really like it. I think I am old enough to
get serous about my studies as well as a career path. I attend
Kennesaw State University and am in the MAT in chemistry
program.
Journey to Teaching:
I decided to become a teacher about fifteen years ago.
Teaching is when you share your knowledge with others and you
love what you are doing. My inspirations were my parents, who
are both college professors. The other path I could go in my
career would be research, where you sit in the lab all day and
hardly ever talk to anybody. I prefer teaching because it is a
social experience.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching
Career:
I would like to share my knowledge with the younger
generation so they also find science to be fun and yet an
important part of their life. I would like to teach chemistry at
a high school.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
Many university professors are great teachers. I would suggest to
others considering a career in science teaching to pay attention
to how and what their best college professors teach.
Katherine Hicks
Background:
I am 22 years old and a Kennesaw native. I briefly attended the University of Georgia before transferring to Kennesaw State and graduating in the summer of 2008
with a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry. I heard about the MAT in Chemistry program during my senior year and feel very privileged to have been accepted into this
wonderful program! I was able to simultaneously finish my Bachelor’s degree and begin the MAT in Chemistry through Kennesaw State’s Accelerated Bachelor’s to
Master’s program, and am very pleased that the MAT program enables its students to receive both a master’s degree as well as the initial teacher’s certification in
a relatively short period of time.
Journey to teaching:
I always thought that I would become a teacher growing up, but my interest in the field of chemistry began during my junior year of high school. I am a graduate of
Cobb County public schools, and had a wonderful chemistry teacher who continually challenged me and encouraged me to take AP Chemistry with her during my senior
year. To this day, I credit her AP Chemistry class to much of my success in college. I also enjoyed tutoring my fellow classmates just as much as I loved learning
more and more about chemistry, which made me realize that I could build a teaching career in this subject area that I am so interested in.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career:
As a teacher I hope to inspire my students in the same way that my chemistry teacher inspired me, as well as continually encourage my students and help them
realize that so many of our modern conveniences are the result of advances in chemistry. Every day will be a challenge, but I look forward to a career in which I
can learn as much from my students as they can learn from me.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
Teaching science provides so many opportunities to engage in hands-on activities that are fun and engaging for students and teachers alike! Science teaches
students to think critically about problems and develop ways in which to solve them, and has the potential to engage the students both analytically and
creatively.
Christina W. James
Background:
Born in Wisconsin, but raised in Marietta, I am thirty years old and in Kennesaw State University's MAT program in secondary Chemistry.
Journey to teaching:
After my daughter was born, I began looking for a career path that would both suit my skills and interests and in which I could feel that I was making a positive
difference in people's lives. While my daughter inspired me to take the leap and start on the path of becoming a teacher, my father, a physics professor, and all
of the amazing teachers I was lucky enough to have in my own schooling have been my inspiration for the kind of teacher I would like to be.
My senior year in high school I chose to take a self-directed independent study chemistry course, one of the requirements of which was to teach a class on covalent bonding to the first year Chemistry students. Preparing and teaching this lesson during my last year in high school - a challenging and extremely rewarding experience - is one I look back upon often when I reflect upon my reasons for choosing to pursue science education.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career:
I would like to instill my students with an enjoyment and understanding of science as well as inspire them to explore their world scientifically. I was lucky
enough to have had many inspirational teachers in my own school career, and I hope to be such an inspiration to my own students. As my background is in
interdisciplinary science studies, my approach to teaching Chemistry (as well as Environmental Systems and Earth Science, I hope) will emphasize the social and
historical context of science. I hope to find a teaching job in either the Marietta area or in rural Georgia.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
The best advice I could give would be to keep in contact with your past teachers that have inspired or challenged you. Both during your teacher education and as a
beginning teacher, those connections will be invaluable for advice, resources, and observational experiences. Also, I would suggest reading as many cross-
disciplinary studies of your subject as possible, as these are great inspirations for lesson plans.
Atikuzzaman Khan
Background:
I am from Bangladesh and am 25yrs old. I started Mechanical Engineering in Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) in April, 2002. After I
completed three semesters there, my family moved to Georgia in May 2004. I went to Georgia Perimeter College (GPC) in Dunwoody from spring’05 to spring’06 before I
transferred to Georgia Institute of Technology (GA Tech) on fall’06. Hopefully, I am finishing my bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in December, 2008. I
will begin the MAT in Physics program at KSU in the summer of 2009.
Journey to teaching:
Teaching was not my first choice of profession. When I was in high school, I wanted to be an athlete more than anything else, but this is not a full time option in
Bangladesh. Then, I started studying engineering because of my parents’ wishes. While working on my bachelor’s degree, I have tutored students from different
backgrounds and different levels. I enjoyed sharing my knowledge with them instead of just thinking about earning big bucks in industry. My teachers helped to
shape me as the person I am today. I am proud of all my teachers who have taught me how to be a good person rather than just a good student with good grades. I
want to help students to build up their lives along with building up their grades.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career:
I want to live a life in which I have some control of my own and to have longer vacations. At the same time, I will help students to better prepare for their
lives. By traveling all over the world during summer vacations, I want to increase my own knowledge so that I can share with everyone during the school year. As a
teacher, I want to teach science courses like Physics, Chemistry, and Math, but absolutely no Biology. Unfortunately, I have no Biology background, none at all. I
may also teach some engineering courses if offered by the school.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
Do not judge the profession by pay only. If a job does not satisfy you mentally, rethink about the job to go further with it. If you think teaching is a good
profession, you should join teaching and make it better. If you think it is worthless, you should definitely join teaching and make it fruitful to next generation.
Remember, you are not just teaching a student; you are building the future of thousands.
Anna Lawrence
Background:
I am from Gainesville, GA and have lived there my whole life. I am a 21 year old Chemistry major at Georgia Tech. I will graduate from Tech in May 2009 and begin
the MAT program of Chemistry Education at Kennesaw in the summer of 2009.
Journey to teaching:
Ever since I can remember, I have played school with friends and my little sister. This desire to become a teacher has been growing since then. My passions are
kids and chemistry and teaching affords me the opportunity to combine the two. Teaching is where God has called me so that I may invest into kids' lives and be a
good role model for them in a very impressionable time of their life.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career:
My goal as a teacher is to positively impact my students in all areas of their life. I hope that my students will obtain responsibility, a strong work ethic, and
an interest in learning from my class. I hope to be able to inspire future generations to excel in life and have a passion for Chemistry.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
Teaching is not for the faint at heart and is a difficult profession. However, the need for passionate and intelligent teachers is great. Consider teaching to
make a difference in a child’s life. Choose teaching because you have the necessary skills to challenge a child to be a better person and learn about the world.
Mark Peterson
Background:
I’m a 24-year-old New Jersey native majoring in Electrical Engineering at Georgia Tech. When I graduate in May 2009, I’ll be entering into KSU’s MAT Physics
program. I can’t wait!
Journey to teaching:
I first seriously considered teaching when I realized I loved learning. Through that love of learning I’ve cultivated a curiosity in so many diverse fields—not
just the technical ones. It is in the same spirit as intellectuals like Sir Winston Churchill and Thomas Jefferson that I see myself as a life-long learner.
In elementary school I remember science class being my favorite subject. I had a great teacher—Mr. Shuster—who did such interesting things! On two or three
occasions we had a guest speaker in his class who was an ornithologist. His talks were so fascinating that birds fill me with a sense of wonder to this day! I’m
not exactly sure what was said, but the impact of moments like that helped spark my enthusiasm for learning.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career:
I’m hoping that as a teacher I can have a truly meaningful impact on others lives and my community. There really isn’t a more important profession! It’s the
pinnacle of public service and imparts the greatest gifts any person can receive: life skills and thirst for knowledge. Besides teaching physics, I’m planning to
become certified to teach mathematics in the hopes of teaching statistics, geometry, or calculus. I’ve always had a knack for computer science so perhaps I can
teach that as well.
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
My advice to college students considering teaching one day: Don’t wait! Do it now! You’re truly needed!
Colin Thomson
Background:
I’m originally from Charlotte, North Carolina. I’m 22 years old, and majored in Physics at Georgia Tech. I’m in the MAT Physics program at KSU, and I’ll be the
first to represent the program!
Journey to teaching:
Teaching very much runs in my family. My mother is a professor of reading education, so I’d be lying if I said she didn’t play a role in my career choice. My
sister is working in the in the international affairs world right now, but she’s going back to school to begin her own teaching career.
Like most young adults interested in teaching, I had a couple of teachers in middle and high school who very much stood out as GREAT. A lot of people in my life turned me off teaching by pointing out the low salaries and taxing work, but I eventually realized about halfway through college that I really don’t need to be doing anything else with my life. A road trip across the country with a couple of friends got me thinking about a lot of these sorts of things.
Goals and Aspirations in Teaching Career: My goal as a teacher is to get as many students as possible interested in science either as a hobby or as a career. I think our country and our society can always use talented individuals in the sciences, and I think that sometimes a lot of these potential students are turned off the subject somewhere along the way to greatness. I want students to stop being afraid of classes like Physics, and instead jump headfirst and expect to have as much fun as I do!
Ideally, I’d like to teach High School Physics, the more advanced the better! As for location, I’m not really sure just yet!
Advice for Prospective Teachers:
There’s plenty of money out there if you’re interested! With the changing political climate, there’s a lot of attention being paid to future teachers. Know that
you’re not alone out there: there’s always someone to help.
The way I saw it:
I’d much rather be having lots of fun in a classroom with young minds than rotting away in a lab somewhere. I think that this career is an extremely rewarding
one. I don’t think you’ll be let down. Besides, in how many other jobs do you get as much freedom to do as you wish? Your lesson plans are up to you!
