Noyce Scholar Profile
Kelly Wilson
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: BS Chemistry
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: High School Chemistry
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Fifth year or post-baccalaureate Noyce scholar
Name of Noyce institution:
UMKC/KC Teach
Current academic or teaching status:
Senior
School and school district:
Internship at Paseo Academy
Background:
I grew up in the Northeast, and I have also had a strong interest in the sciences. I went to college in Quincy, Massachusetts for music, and decided after I graduated that I really missed working in the sciences. I planned to go back to school for nursing, but during one of my nursing prerequesites, I fell in love with Chemistry. I felt a particular pull toward teaching because of the way I enjoyed tutoring my classmates. I returned to UMKC to earn a second bachelors and then found out about the KC-Teach program.
Why do you want to teach:
I want to teach, because I believe too many students have given up on the sciences, or on school altogether. I want to show them it is not beyond their grasp, and I want to equip them to become whatever they dream to become.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
When I was in college, I worked part time as a choir teacher in a private school. It was tough work to get kids from to kindergarten to 12th grade excited about singing in a choir. But I still remember how proud the seniors were when they sang in their final concert. They had worked hard and made it their own; it was no longer an instructor forcing them to love it. They wanted to succeed, because they had found their own desire within.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The Noyce program makes me feel appreciated as a student who loves the sciences and wants to teach others to love them as well. It has made it possible for me to change my life plans for the better without the strenuous financial burden. And it has shown me the deep need that is present in our society for teachers who care. I want to be part of the movement to redeem our country’s school system.
