Noyce Scholar Profile
Lisa Pitts
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Neuroscience and German
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Biology, grades 9-12; Basic Math, grades 6-9
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Fifth year or post-baccalaureate Noyce scholar
Name of Noyce institution:
Pacific University
Current academic or teaching status:
Graduate Student
School and school district:
Woodburn School District
Background:
I spent my childhood in rural northern New Hampshire, then went to Smith College to graduate with degrees in Neuroscience and German. I also lived in Hamburg, Germany for a year during this time. Post graduation, I found myself in an AmeriCorps position with an organization that brought after school science classes to high-needs schools. I’ve spent the past several years working in an independent school teaching kindergarten.
Why do you want to teach:
After working and volunteering in education in various capacities–GED tutoring, science museum volunteer, non-profit work, and in the classroom–I decided that where I really wanted to be was in a classroom full time. My past years in a kindergarten class left me inspired everyday by the joy those children had in learning. I want to work with older children to hopefully encourage that same love of learning I saw in younger students. I specifically want to teach science because it is a love of mine, and I feel it has the capacity to empower students with real-world knowledge to help them become engaged, critical thinkers.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
There was a wetlands next to the school where I taught kindergarten. My class last year happened to take a keen interest in the wetlands, and my favorite memories are our near-daily trips to the water. Everyone would pull on their rain boots, grab their journals, and off we would go! My favorite memory is when one child somehow managed to go up to his waist in the water, and yet wasn’t the least bit phased by it. Hands-on science at its finest!
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The program has made it possible for me to afford pursuing my goal of becoming a teacher. I also value the community of Noyce scholars that I am joining, and the wealth of experience that they share and I can tap in to. I look forward to having a lasting connection to the program after I have finished.
