Noyce Scholar Profile
Holly Otto
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Biology
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Biology, grades 9-12
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Noyce Scholar
Name of Noyce institution:
Pacific University
Current academic or teaching status:
Senior
School and school district:
Varsity Assistant Coach and Junior Varsity Coach at Glencoe High School
Background:
Growing up in Hillsboro, OR, I attended Glencoe High School and graduated in 2004. At Glencoe, I was a 3-sport athlete–volleyball, basketball, and track. Upon graduation, I attended Portland State University and Portland Community College where I received a general associate’s degree. I transferred to Pacific University, where I am a member of both the Connections and Biology Clubs. 2012 will mark the completion of my undergraduate degree in Biology. Over the past 2 years, I have become very involved in youth athletics, specifically volleyball. I have coached girls’ club volleyball teams as well as several youth volleyball summer camps through Glencoe High School. Currently, I am the JV and Varsity assistant volleyball coach at Glencoe. In June 2012, I will begin my Master’s of Teaching Program with an emphasis in Biology at Pacific University.
Why do you want to teach:
Attending Pacific, I have had the ability to experience many educational opportunities. The university offers many out-of-class extracurricular academic activities. I have participated in the Elk Research Program, an independent research study that is directly related to my interest as a biology major. This fall, I am enrolled in the tropical rain forest traveling course. I will travel to Costa Rica and study culture and organisms of the tropical rain forest, as well as conduct field research for my senior capstone course. Pacific has offered me these great opportunities. By participating in these studies I will have received course credit for my hard work as well as gained extensive field research experience. These experiences alone have shaped my goals and academic endeavors of the future, and Pacific as a whole has been very influential to my life. Arriving at the university, I was unsure if I would be continuing my education, but within the three years I have spent there, those plans have changed. The mutually respectful working relationships with my professors have changed the way I think about teaching and learning. My direct experience with the professors and extracurricular academic activities has ignited my passion for science and teaching. Exposure to Pacific University directly affected my decision to become a high school Science Teacher. As a current student and a future educator, I see the relevance of these important influences and am willing to see that future students benefit from the same opportunities that I have been given. Coming from a similar situation, receiving my diploma form Glencoe High School, I have personally experienced the restrictions associated with a high-needs classroom environment. I am looking forward to working in a high-needs school district that will allow me to broaden students’ knowledge and curiosity of the natural world.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
Throughout the years at Pacific University, I have built personal working relationships with all my professors. They are very encouraging in offering their time and office hours whenever I need help with course work or even advise. Whether it is a conversation over coffee or a recommendation letter request, their door is always open. It was a professor’s sincere optimism and guidance that gave me the direction to apply for the Noyce Scholarship Program and the College of Education. Although it may be an indirect teaching moment, it stands out in my mind. I want to stimulate the same courage in my future students.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The Noyce Program has been instrumental in allowing me to accomplish my professional career goal of becoming a high school science teacher. Without this tremendous opportunity, my ambition to become a science teacher may not have been reached and my work with students never achieved.
