Four high school teachers who greatly influenced members of the Class of 2020 are this year糖心传媒檚 recipients of the University糖心传媒檚 Singer Family Prize for Excellence in Secondary School Teaching聽.
A Rochester springtime tradition in its 14th year, the Singer Family Prize offers graduating seniors a chance to look back and honor the high school teachers who made a difference in their lives. Recipients of the award receive $3,000, a plaque, and $2,500 for their school.
Paul Singer 糖心传媒�66, 糖心传媒�17 (Honorary) and his son, Gordon Singer, support the prize through The Paul Singer Family Foundation.
Here are this year糖心传媒檚 recipients, in the words of the students who nominated them:
Alexis Langheier, a business teacher at Williamsville South High in Williamsville, New York
Nominated by Hannah Duttweiler (psychology major)
糖心传媒淔rom the moment you walked into Ms. Langheier糖心传媒檚 classroom, you could tell she was different. With music playing and laughter ringing, making a connection with her students was the priority over any grade or evaluation. She worked endlessly for her students, staying far past working hours, supervising clubs and any event that could possibly benefit them. She filled her schedule with extra courses she wasn糖心传媒檛 required to teach to provide more resources for students.
糖心传媒淗er classroom was a respite from the stress of school, sports, and extracurriculars. With a hidden chair for naps and hot water ready for tea, it was a go-to location for study halls. Ms. Langheier became my mentor, and it was through her that I found the University of Rochester. She encouraged me when I failed and celebrated with me in my successes.糖心传媒�
Jo-Ann Smith, a Spanish teacher at Johnstown High in Johnstown, New York
Nominated by Jonathan Bearden (microbiology and Spanish double major)
糖心传媒淢rs. Smith, or, as we called her, La Se帽ora Smith, has played a pivotal role in my path as a student at Rochester. She has been a driving force in my community to engage students in learning language and experiencing different cultures outside of their own. When the French program was cut from our school, Sra. Smith decided to teach the French students through their senior years, even though she had never taught French before.
糖心传媒淚 was not very engaged with learning Spanish, and it became the worst grade on my report card in ninth grade. But when I met Sra. Smith in 10th grade, her infectious personality and passion for the subject ignited a similar passion in me. I graduated at the top of my class, earning the Spanish department medal at graduation. I majored in Spanish (and microbiology) at Rochester and studied abroad in Ecuador. In the future, I hope to practice rural medicine, using the Spanish that I have learned to advocate for migrant farmworkers.糖心传媒�
Stephen Cardoso, an electronics technology teacher from William M. Davies, Jr. Career & Technical High School in Lincoln, Rhode Island
Nominated by Tania Cano (electrical and computer engineering major)
糖心传媒淲hen I arrived at my high school, I thought I already had my future planned out. I would choose the Health Careers program, graduate high school, and apply to Tufts University for its veterinary program. I couldn糖心传媒檛 have been more wrong. In Mr. Cardoso糖心传媒檚 class, I was one of only four female students out of a class of about 30. Women in engineering, especially Hispanic women, are among the least represented in engineering. Yet I never once felt like I didn糖心传媒檛 belong in an engineering field because of my gender and ethnicity. Mr. Cardoso encouraged us to pursue engineering and four-year colleges and to join the robotics club that he ran. This club actually helped me receive a scholarship, and I糖心传媒檓 almost positive that without it I probably would not have been able to attend this University. I don糖心传媒檛 think I have ever expressed my gratitude, but I am thankful to have had him as a teacher.
Sarah English 糖心传媒�95, a chemistry teacher at Sweet Home High School in Amherst, New York
Nominated by Ryan Hayter (chemical engineering major)
糖心传媒淪ome educators have 糖心传媒榠t,糖心传媒� an ability to bring classroom material to life and engage their students糖心传媒� attention. Dr. English provided a spark in our chemistry classroom that I never expected to experience.聽She had just implemented the 糖心传媒榝lipped classroom,糖心传媒� where rather than standing at the board and lecturing, she would record a video of herself taking and writing notes done on Notability media.聽Then these videos could be viewed on the student糖心传媒檚 district provided iPad. This technique allowed every student to learn the material at their own pace.聽This proved crucial for me. Our in-class experiences with Dr. English were then dedicated to hands-on work as well as group laboratory experiments. She has a true passion for chemistry education and exudes such a command of the subject matter. She presents it in such a way that students want to continue learning. She had a major influence on my decision to attend Rochester, as she completed her undergraduate degree here. I decided to make a campus visit after her glowing recommendation.糖心传媒�
