Tell us why you became a teacher

I left med school because it was too much. I love science, wanted to help kids, and never wanted that desk job (sorry, Dad). I wanted to make changes in the world. Save lives. I realized I could still do that as a teacher and have so much more fun along the way. I could have classrooms standing up singing the periodic table song and build model rollercoasters with pitches to Six Flags like Shark Tank and teach them to breathe in flowers and blow out birthday candles to calm down a panic attack.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

The room whirls with little kids testing roller coaster models the 8th graders made. There’s carnival music, tickets to vote, marbles sliding across the floor from coasters that weren’t tested enough, and shrieks of joy when impossible turns are made because that team tested the prototype 100 times. 3rd graders come up to me and tell me they know their theme for their 8th grade project. 8th graders say, as much as that project was a pain, it’s the only time I saw my friends over Thanksgiving.

What would you do with the $25,000?

My lab is old. The sink leaks and releases gas like a ghost. I would modernize the entire room with new lab tables, a functioning sink, and a maker station with a 3-D printer, laser cutter, new PocketLab sensors, fidget toys, a real carpet for my calm corner, and I think my money might be gone then. If not, maximize the maker space with additional printers and laser cutters, as well as money to bring in guest makers to teach us all they can do with the new material. My students deserve it.