News: Teacher stories

Donna Meller is a science instructor at Pettisville High School, teaching 8th grade science, chemistry, physics, anatomy & physiology, environmental science and a high school research class. Other roles include Science Fair Director, STEM Club co-coordinator, Pettisville FFA Alumni member, and Henry County Junior Fair Board Advisor for the Horse Department. In addition, she provides oversight for all science research projects at the high school and works closely with the …

Rachel Sanders teaches Bioresearch at Global Impact STEM Academy. She’s been teaching for 18 years, and her favorite part of teaching is exploring new ideas and experiments with students. She is co-advisory of the school’s FFA team, coordinator of the Clark County Science Fair, and hosts a 4H STEM summer camp. What is the benefit of FTW resources? I highly recommend the FTW pd events to educators because of the hands-on …

Jeremy Grove is in his fifth year of teaching AFNR, Animal and Plant Sciences, and Agronomic Systems at East Technical High School in Cleveland. He also advises the FFA chapter at his school. He particularly enjoys the moment when students who were in total confusion and disbelief finally understand a concept! Why would you recommend the FTW resources to other educators? The best thing about FTW is the network of …

Students in Jeff Jostpille’s Fort Jennings Environmental Science class have recently been studying alternative energy sources, researching and experimenting with wind power, solar power, and hydrogen fuel cell power. They then turned their attention to fuels produced from biomass. Two such fuels include biodiesel and ethanol. Working with Chemistry teacher Heather Harmon, the two classes combined their knowledge to successfully create ethanol and biodiesel. The Fort Jennings students prepared 4 different …

Chuck Crawford teaches AP Environmental Science and Advanced Research in Science at Dublin Jerome High School. In his 19th year of teaching, Crawford’s favorite part of the job is interacting with students and seeing their development over the year. A demo plot on school grounds allows Crawford to incorporate hands-on ag-related activities and lessons in his classes. Would you recommend the FTW workshop to other educators? Yes! This gives us …

Jeff teaches Biology, Anatomy, Botany, Zoology, Environmental Science, and 8th grade Science at Fort Jennings High School. He’s finishing up his 28th year as a teacher, and his favorite part is being in the classroom talking about science and participating in science through labs, projects, experiments, etc. He likes being with the kids and helping them discover something new about the world. In addition to teaching, he coaches the Envirothon …

Science teacher Donna Meller said the Pettisville High School STEM Program appreciated the mini-grant they received this year to help provide materials for a Genetics Module. Students participated in a four-week unit led by Bill Holdsworth, Plant Breeder from Rupp Seeds, on Plant Genetics. For one of the sessions Meller’s class used the pGlo Transformation kit purchased with funds from the Feed the World mini-grant to learn how plant genetics …

Brian teaches Environmental Science, Biology, Science and Society at Ohio Hi-Point Career Center. He’s been there four years, and his favorite part of teaching is forming lasting mentor relationships with students even after they graduate. He’s also involved in Envirothon, the Science Education Council of Ohio, and the National Science Teachers Association. How has Feed the World changed your view of agriculture? It helped me to gain a better understanding …