The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program

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John

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Noyce Scholar Profile

John Hoofnagle

Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Mechanical Engineering

Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Secondary Math & Physics

Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Noyce Teaching Fellow

Name of Noyce institution:
University of Northern Iowa

Current academic or teaching status:
Student, Iowa Teacher Intern License Pathway

School and school district:
Cedar Falls, Waterloo, Cedar Valley Catholic Schools, Valley Lutheran HS

Background:

I graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1989 as a Mechanical Engineer and served on a nuclear submarine and in Naval Intelligence for 7 years. I left the Navy and worked for several large and small medical device companies and earned a MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Western Michigan. Most recently, I left a position as Director of R&D to move to Cedar Falls, Iowa, to enable my wife to teach at the University of Northern Iowa. I have been substituting extensively to prepare myself for teaching and to better understand the job I hope to being soon.

Why do you want to teach:

After reflection on what I enjoyed most about my jobs since graduating from USNA, I realize it was my time teaching, particularly math & science. I have quickly confirmed that I can make a difference for my students, I can connect with them to motivate and inspire, and I can get complex material across to them in ways that stick.

Describe a memorable teaching experience:

My most memorable experience comes frequently when I substitute at Cedar Falls and Waterloo area schools. It’s nice to hear from teachers, principals and staff that they get what they need when I teach. They tell me that students often understand material they couldn’t get until I taught it, lesson plans stay on track, and teachers appreciate the effort I put in. The memorable part is that I’m the only substitute whose name I hear students happily exclaim down the hall before first period when I walk in the building.

What does the Noyce program mean to you:

The Noyce program has reinforced that I made the right decision and that my choice is valued by others.

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This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under Grant Numbers DUE-2041597 and DUE-1548986. Any opinions, findings, interpretations, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of its authors and do not represent the views of the AAAS Board of Directors, the Council of AAAS, AAAS’ membership or the National Science Foundation.

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