Noyce Scholar Profile
Cara Hetrick
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics Education
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Mathematics, grades 6-8
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Master Teaching Fellow
Name of Noyce institution:
San Diego State University
Current academic or teaching status:
8 years teaching experience
School and school district:
Mueller Charter School, Chula Vista Elementary School District
Background:
I graduated from Millersville Univerity (2000) with a degree in Biology and Chemistry. I worked as an environmental consultant for 5 years before deciding to become a teacher. I am a graduate of the High Tech High credentialing program and am currently working towards a master’s degree in K-8 Mathematics Education at San Diego State University. I have worked in a variety of school settings for the past 8 years in San Diego County and am very excited about continuing my education to become better every day.
Why do you want to teach:
I am excited every day to come to work and get the opportunity to share the love of learning with students. The population that I work with has little opportunity on their own to experience to joys of discovering something new, and I believe that is my main goal with my students. If I can work to help my students to want to learn, enjoy learning, and see the value in learning new things, I consider myself successful.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
I once worked with a student who was severely autistic. He was in a full inclusion classroom. He was the first student in the class to be able to understand and explain how to solve a systems of equations problem. When asked how he got it so easily, he told the class that it was because he was interested in the problem, because it had Disney characters in it. We all learned something from Anthony that day. I learned that all it takes is a spark to ignite a passion for learning in a child.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
I am very excited to continue learning about best practices and the ways that students learn, as this has also been a focus of the master’s program that I am in. My participation in the Noyce program affords me an opportunity to continue to explore and experiment with best teaching practices while being supported by a wonderful group of talented educators.
