Rodrigo Anadon | Mishawaka, Indiana

2011 Indiana Affiliate
Penn High School

Rodrigo J. Anadon started in the Business Department at Penn High School in November of 2000. He has been using computers since 1983 and enjoys coding. He graduated from Notre Dame and IUSB with both bachelor and master degrees. He is a proud member of the Computer Science Teacher Association (CSTA) and has joined the MSDN Academic Alliance to better serve his students. He currently enjoys troubleshooting computers, assisting staff with technology, and spending free time with his beautiful wife, Deanne and his three children (Nicholas, Alex, and Nina).

Stacey Armstrong | Cypress, TX

2011 Houston Area Affiliate
Cypress Woods High School

Stacey Armstrong is the Business/Computer Science department chair at Cy Woods HS. Prior to arriving at Cy Woods, he taught AP Computer Science and Computer Science at Cy Falls for 3 years and at Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas, for seven years.

He serves as an AP Computer Science consultant for the College Board, an AP Reading Leader, and as a member of the AP Computing Commission that is creating a brand new AP Computing course.

He also serves on the UIL Computer Science Advisory Committee that provides input and helps direct the UIL Computer Science contest.

Over the past 14 years, he has coached teams to numerous state championships -- the last of which was in 2006 when I was at Cy Falls.

“I am honored to receive the NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Educator Award,” Armstrong said. “NCWIT does an outstanding job of encouraging young women to participate in computing and recognizing their accomplishments. I share that passion and hope to continue to see broader participation in computing across the board as computer science skills are valuable to all students.”

Jeff Blackman | Hood River, Oregon

2011 Oregon/SW Washington Affiliate
Hood River Valley High School

Jeff Blackman has focused his teaching on increasing student’s participation in technology and engineering since 1999. As a teacher of mathematics and engineering Jeff believes that the best education is a hands on approach to learning.

In his Engineering I class, students design, build and test projects from bridges to stirling engines.  Students explore different types of engineering including civil, mechanical and electrical.  The engineering process is reinforced throughout the year, and students learn from both their failures and their successes.   

Students then proceed to his Engineering II class, where they compete in the Electrathon America or First Robotics FTC competition.  Students’ learn necessary skills to complete their projects including welding, fabricating, computer programming and design processing.  Students are also required to research colleges and universities for engineering, math or science. 

At home, Jeff enjoys being a father and husband, Boy Scout leader, windsurfer, kite-boarder,  skier, and bicycler.  He lives in Hood River, nature’s playground for kids and adults.

Mark Daubenmier | Gahanna, Ohio

2012 Ohio Affiliate
The Columbus Academy

Mark Daubenmier has been teaching AP computer science for 15 years at Columbus Academy in addition to math and other computer science courses. Part of his educational philosophy is that it is no longer sufficient to master the content of a course. In order to remain competitive in today's global marketplace, students also need to bring to the table other skills, such as the ability to collaborate well with others. You can peek inside of Mark's collaborative classroom by watching this video.

Rebecca Dovi | Hanover, Virginia

2012 Virginia and Washington, DC Affiliate
Patrick Henry High School

Rebecca Dovi has taught high school computer science full time for 15 years. She is among 10 secondary school teachers nationwide selected to pilot the new CS Principles course under development by CollegeBoard. In Virginia, Rebecca serves as the founding president of the CSTA - Central Virginia chapter and represents Virginia nationally in the CSTA Leadership Cohort. She also works for Virginia Advanced Studies Strategies, the Virginia branch of the National Math Science Initiative, as a coordinator for computer science.

Rebecca is lucky to teach in Hanover County, Virginia where every high school has a full time computer science teacher. In Hanover, she heads the computer science curriculum committee.

A graduate of the College of William and Mary with a BS in mathematics, Rebecca completed extensive post graduate coursework in computer science at Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University. She holds licenses from the state of Virginia to teach both math and computer science. When not grading papers, she knits and tends chickens.

Jerry Esparza | Denver, Colorado

2011 Colorado Affiliate
Thomas Jefferson High School

Jerry Esparza is currently a Denver Public Schools Teacher. This is his 5th year teaching at Thomas Jefferson High School in the Center for Communication Technology program. His main teaching focus is teaching 3D Design and Web Design. He is also a teacher adviser for Skills USA, a student run organization that allows students to take on leadership responsibilities and compete in their technology skills nationally.

In 2007 Jerry served as a panelist for the NCWIT and NSF Summit workshop on K-12 IT Education. From 2003-2008 he worked with the summer technology camp, Digital Currents, a collaboration effort between the ATLAS program at CU and the Denver Public Schools. Prior to joining the Center For Communication Technology, formerly the Computer Magnet, Jerry taught computer technology in various K-8 and middle schools within DPS. He also served as the School Technology Resource specialist, assisting teachers with technology integration within the curriculum.

His other teaching experience, include implementing the Online Individual Career Academic Portfolio across the school district. And, spent eight years as a middle school science teacher using technology as a tool for learning.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Science Education from the University of Iowa and is obtaining his Masters from UCD in Instructional Technology. His most recent educational accomplishments, was receiving his Colorado Principal’s License from Denver University. He also is serving as a member of the Collaboration School Committee and the Teacher Leadership Committee for Thomas Jefferson High School.

Baker Franke | Chicago, Illinois

2011 Illinois Affiliate
The University of Chicago Laboratory High School

Since he started teaching in 2002, Baker has worked to increase the visibility and credibility of high school computer science. With much help from his colleagues at Lab, Baker helped institute a computer science graduation requirement at The Laboratory Schools. The result was the development of an introductory computer science course that is taken by all 9th graders at the school.  

Baker is also proud of the number of young women who take AP Computer Science at Lab and go on to major in CS or a related field and then move on to take jobs in the industry. For the past two years Baker has seen 50% female enrollment in AP Computer Science which he credits mostly to the visibility that the NCWIT award provides to young women each year at the school.

Recently Baker has been working on a project as part of the NSF-funded grant entitled "Computational Thinking Across the Curriculum," which was started three years ago by Amber Settler at DePaul University as an effort to help instructors in traditionally non-technical disciplines include projects in their courses that require computational thinking. Baker's research is related to finding effective instructional methods for teaching computer programming to 9th graders in short, non-contiguous periods of time.

On March 1, 2011 Baker addressed a panel of congressional aides and education policy makers on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. as part of the "Computing in the Core" advocacy effort to include federally mandated computer science standards in the new Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Baker participated in the hearing as part of a panel of CS educators, students, school superintendents and advocates by sharing his perspective on teaching CS to students in grades K-12.

Baker has a B.A. in Computer Science and English from Amherst College in Massachusetts, and an M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Chicago.

Ria Galanos | Roswell, Georiga

2011 Georgia Affiliate
Centennial High School

Ria Galanos is in her tenth year teaching high school mathematics and computer science, in her 8th year teaching AP Computer Science, and has worked at Centennial High School in Roswell, GA for her entire teaching career. She is passionate about introducing young people to computer science as well as collaborating with teachers in order to improve student achievement. She has been certified as an AP Computer Science teacher by the College Board, served as a reader for the AP Computer Science exam since 2007, and served as a reviewer for the College Board's AP audit for computer science teachers.

She co-founded the Georgia chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) and currently serves as the chapter president. In 2010, she mentored two teaching teams for Georgia Institute of Technology's Operation Reboot program, a program to help IT professionals re-enter the workforce as a high school computer science teacher by pairing them with an existing computing teacher.

Ms. Galanos holds a bachelor's degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a master's degree in Secondary Mathematics Education from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, an advanced teaching diploma from Emory University, and is currently pursuing a computer science endorsement from Columbus State University.

Denise Gardiner | Colorado Springs, Colorado

2011 Colorado Affiliate
Pine Creek High School

Denise Gardiner's unexpected interest in technology began as an undergraduate when she found that she enjoyed the problem solving process and logical reasoning required in her Computer Science classes. After earning her BA at Vanderbilt University, she worked as a computer programmer and systems analyst. Fulfilling a lifelong dream, she then became a Peace Corps volunteer in the Federated States of Micronesia where she taught English as a Second Language. Upon returning to the United States, she completed a graduate program at Florida State University to become a math and technology teacher. In 2000-2001 she piloted a year-long Oracle Academy database class in which students learn database design and SQL programming.

Denise also served as an adjunct instructor for Oracle Corp. for five years, training and mentoring new Oracle Academy teachers across the US. In 2007 she co-founded Pine Creek High School's annual technology luncheon in which prospective female technology students learn about technology courses, degrees, and careers from women in the IT industry as well as from girls currently studying technology at Pine Creek.

Robert Getka | Janesville, Wisconsin

2012 Wisconsin Affiliate
Parker High School

Robert Getka grew up on a dairy farm in southern Wisconsin, the second of nine children. He graduated from Big Foot High School and then received his diploma from Rockford College in 1986 with a dual degree in math and computer science, along with minors in education and business administration. Robert completed his Masters degree in Instructional Technologies at the University of South Florida, where he was also a member of Phi Kappa Phi.

Robert now teaches the AP Computer Science course at Parker High School and volunteers to grade the AP exams each year. He is also involved in their baseball team, and also coaches little league. Robert and his wife Susan have three children.

Richard Guenther | Longmont, Colorado

2012 Colorado Affiliate
Skyline High School

Richard Guenther teaches Computer Science at Skyline High School in Longmont, CO. During the last seven years he has helped bring Computer Science to Skyline’s diverse student population. Working with Colorado University through the GK-12 NSF program, he has created a full curriculum of Computer Science classes ranging from Intro to Programming to Applied Software Engineering. Richard also has worked with area tech firms to arrange internships for his students, and in 2012 he helped establish the MAD Team (Mobile Apps Development Team) at Skyline, allowing students to earn money and experience producing applications for area investors and organizations.

Richard learned to program on a Commodore Vic-20 (5k of RAM!), and has helped promote free and open source software throughout his career. His current project with his students is establishing the Skyline Creative Commons, a collection of original digital art and sound creations to serve as a convenient online repository for students to utilize in the years to come.  His favorite language is Python, but LISP is running a close second.

Jacob Hazard | Studio City, California

2012 Southern California Affiliate
Harvard-Westlake School

Jacob Hazard is in his eighth year of teaching Mathematics and Computer Science at Harvard-Westlake’s upper school in Studio City, California. He is also the Dean of Faculty, the Secretary for the Cum Laude Society, and is active in developing the use of technology in the school. He is the faculty advisor for the Computer Science club, has assisted with the Robotics and Rocketry clubs, and he helped manage the development of Harvard-Westlake’s online Alumni Job Board. Jacob graduated from Northwestern University with a B.A. in Mathematics and earned his M.A. in Independent School Leadership through the Klingenstein Leadership Academy at Teachers College, Columbia University. He has also taught at The Harker School in San Jose, California, the Westminster School in Simsbury, Connecticut, and in Japan through the Japan Exchange in Teaching (JET) program. Jacob is a huge baseball fan and follows every move the Detroit Tigers make. Go Tigers!

Melissa Heeren | St. Petersburg, Florida

2012 North Central Florida Affiliate
Lakewood High School

Melissa Heeren earned a Bachelor's of Science degree in Mathematics with a minor of Computer Science and a Bachelor's of Arts degree in French from the University of Central Florida in 1981. After graduation, she worked as a software engineer, developing data and voice communications products. She worked in Paris for a year on an X25 packet switch. Currently when she's not teaching, she works as a part-time on-call software engineer for MITRE Corp., a federally funded research and development corporation.

After staying home for a number of years to raise her three energetic boys, Melissa started teaching French and mathematics. A few years later she accepted a position at the Center for Advanced Technologies (CAT) at Lakewood High School in st. Petersburg. CAT is the math, science, and computer magnet program for Pinellas County, Florida.

Melissa teaches all levels of computer science in the CAT Program, including AP Computer Science. She sponsors their Game Programming Club and is taking several teams of programmers to the University of Central Florida's High School Programming Competition in May 2012.

As a software engineer, she gets tremendous satisfaction from recognizing computing ability and encouraging talented young women to pursue computer science.

David Herman | New Albany, Ohio

2011 Ohio Affiliate
New Albany High School

David Herman served over 25 years in the US Army before retiring in 1994. Many of those years were spent in teaching and leadership roles. Following six years as a commercial instructor of operating systems, applications and programming languages, he was offered the opportunity to put his skills to work in public education.

David began teaching the Honors Cisco Networking Course at New Albany (Ohio) High School in 2002, and immediately noticed that few girls enrolled in the course. He added the AP Computer Science Course to his practice in 2004, and once again was troubled by the lack of young women. To help attract more girls to information technology studies, David proposed an introductory robotics course whose methodology and content would better fit their learning styles. It relies heavily on group work and results in real-world product prototypes that often explore assistive technologies. The course attracts a growing number of girls each year, and lets them transition comfortably into more advanced IT studies. He ensures that all female technology students are made aware of the efforts of the National Center for Women in Information Technology (NCWIT), regularly recommends summer programs run by The Ohio State University chapter of Women in Engineering (WIE), and promotes the activities and resources of the Dot Diva organization.

Stephanie Hoeppner | Batavia, Ohio

2011 Cincinnati Tri-State Area Affiliate
Clermont Northeastern High School

Stephanie Hoeppner is a Computer Science Teacher as well an Assistant Technology Coordinator for Clermont Northestern Schools in Batavia, Ohio. She has been involved in teaching computer science courses for twelve years at the high school level. Her passion is teaching computer science to all students, as she believes this is an essential tool for their future. Beyond teaching, Stephanie has worked on developing computer science curriculum for her current and former school districts. Stephanie serves as a Cohort Leader for the Computer Science Teacher’s Association (CSTA), where she promotes computer science education through training and advocacy. Stephanie also serves as the Vice-President of the Ohio Chapter of CSTA and works on professional development for other computer science teachers.

Debi Huffman | Atlanta, Georgia

2012 Georgia Affiliate
Fernbank Science Center

Early in her teaching career, participation in an aerospace education workshop inspired Debi to earn her private pilot’s certificate. Today she continues to fly, and has taught aerospace classes to thousands of students at Fernbank Science Center over a period of nineteen years.

It was the interests of her students that extended Debi’s grasp to include engineering through robotics. In 2004, her Model Rocketry team decided to compete in BEST Robotics, which is continued today. The students added FIRST Robotics to their involvement in 2011. The founding students established themselves as the “LINKSters”, Linking Ideas and Networking Kids with Science. In 2004, the LINKSters began Science Night Out for elementary and middle school students as their primary outreach and fundraising activity. SNO continues to be a mainstay for the LINKSters and one of Fernbank’s most popular public programs.  The LINKSters also host First LEGO League workshops for rookie teams and an FLL Qualifier for DeKalb County teams.

Active in several professional organizations related to aerospace, Debi serves on boards and advisory boards to promote education and student opportunities. She helps students with scholarships and activities that promote their personal interests.

Debi is a recipient of the 2007 EAA Major Achievement Award, the Frank G. Brewer Memorial Award for outstanding contributions to the advancement of youth in aerospace activities, the 2003 Aero Club of Atlanta member of the Year award, 2009 Fernbank Science Center Teacher of the Year, 2010 Epps Award for outstanding aviation achievement and the 2011 Frank G. Brewer Outstanding Aerospace Educator Award for the Southeast Region of Civil Air Patrol.

Debi is dedicated to inspiring students to work hard and follow their passions. Noteworthy is one student, Colonel Eric Boe, who achieved his goal of becoming an Air Force Test Pilot and a NASA astronaut, successfully piloting two Space Shuttle missions.

Mindy Johns | New Albany, Indiana

2011 Cincinnati Tri-State Area Affiliate
New Albany High School

Mindy Johns graduated from Indiana University in 1988 with an Associates degree in Computer Science and a Masters degree in Secondary Education with certificates in Math and Computer Science. She has been teaching Computer Science in Southern Indiana since 1984. The journey from mainframes, printer/terminals, and BASIC to C#, Xbox games, and object-oriented programming has been challenging and exciting.  She has attended many conferences and workshops and has devoted many hours in the summer to keeping her curriculum current.  She has formed partnerships with corporations such as Anthem and Heartland Payment Systems which have exposed her students to what IT is like in the real world.  

Mindy has had great success with the AP Computer Science program at New Albany High School.  Her students have averaged between 3.75 and 4.0 on the AP Exam.  She now has 32 students in the program, including 8 girls.  These young women have an average GPA of 3.62 and currently include 3 valedictorians and a National Achievement Scholarship Program finalist. Several of her students have participated on award winning regional computer competition teams.  Most of these girls intend to pursue careers in technology.

Mindy thinks it is important for young women to know that it is possible to be a “girly girl” and a computer geek at the same time.  She encourages her girls to embrace their femininity while being confident and proud of their intelligence.  They all wear their (NA)2, New Albany  - Nerds Anonymous, tee-shirts with honor.

Kathleen Johnson | Springdale, Arkansas

2011 Arkansas Area Affiliate
Springdale High School

Over the last 25 years, Kathleen has seen all facets of the technology field from being a programmer, to teaching at a vocational school, a junior high, and finally settling in at Springdale High School.  Kathleen teaches the CA I, II and III courses, Advanced Database, Advanced Spreadsheet, Web Technologies and occasionally Alice (Intro to Obj. Oriented Programming.

Kathleen was an integral part of the start of the Mastery Computer Applications curriculum (piloted in 1999) which started at Springdale High School and is now an accepted alternative curriculum for the Arkansas Department of Career Education.  This curriculum consists of two to three core classes in which students learn Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Internet Researching and E-Mail.  Students must master each unit with 80% before they can move on to the next topic.  Many Arkansas schools have switched to this new curriculum.  Each summer, Kathleen teaches the Computer Applications In-Service which is required to teach the CA curriculum.

In 2009, Kathleen was one of the team of teachers who pioneered the Information Technology (IT) Academy at Springdale High School.  The IT Academy has seven majors:  Information Support and Services, Programming/Software Engineering, Web Site Programming & Design, IT Accounting, IT Management, E-Commerce, and Graphic Arts. This year, Kathleen worked to design the Web Technologies and Adv. DB Frameworks and test banks and served on a committee to re-write the Computer  I, II and III Applications Frameworks and test banks.

Terra Kennedy | Charlotte, North Carolina

2011 North Carolina Area Affiliate
Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology

For more than a decade, career educator and child advocate Terra Kennedy has been an integral part of our nation's youngest and brightest educational stewards. Ms. Kennedy graduated in 1999 from Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education. Shortly after, she started her lifelong dream as a teacher in the fall of 1999 at York Technical College. Her involvement with Career and Technical Education (CTE) as well as VOCATS made it possible for her to transition to the next phase in her career where in 2002 she became highly recruited as a Computer Applications teacher at a brand new technical vocational High School called Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology.

In 2006, Terra Kennedy was promoted to Academy of Information Technology Coordinator; a role that she has held until present. As her track record has shown, it did not take long to reach success. After only one year under her supervision, Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology was awarded Academy of the Year by the National Academy Foundation whose mission is to prepare young people for college and career success.

Eliza Kuberska | New York, New York

2012 New York Affiliate
Hunter College High School

Since September 2002, Eliza Kuberska has felt lucky to be a part of the Hunter math community. "Standing on shoulders of giants," namely her colleagues, she has found her way to the math team where she has quickly met students who have outgrown her in terms of mathematics and computer science. She graduated from University of Chicago with a Bachelor's degree and from NYU with a Master of Science. She loves problem solving and is looking forward to deepening her knowledge of computer science over the summer.

Therese Laux | Omaha, Nebraska

2012 Nebraska Affiliate
Omaha North High Magnet School

Therese Laux is a facilitator, collaborator, innovator, and creativity entrepreneur at Omaha North High Magnet School. She has both founded and developed the school's Music and Media Technology Program. Therese believes in embracing today's technology to facilitate creative learning opportunities for all students. To be a student in her classroom community is an adventure in discovering one's passion and potential. Students in her program have earned awards from the National School Boards Association, Fort Omaha Film Conference, Nebraska Educational Technology Association, Apple Digital Media Competition, and others.

Therese considers herself a lifelong learner and is appreciative of the outstanding educational opportunities she has received at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, University of Nebraska-Llincoln, Temple University, and through other, less formal environments.

She has shared her views on creativity, technology, and education at conferences accross the nation including National Educational Computing Conference, National School Boards Association Technology and Learning Conference, and Magnet Schools of America.

Ms. Laux is humbled and proud to be an Apple Distinguished Educator (2007), a "Best Buy Teacher Award" recipient (2009), AIM Institute K-12 Technology Educator of the Year (2009), ITW Educator of the Year (2009) and a Fulbright-Hays Seminar Abroad delegate (2010, Africa).

Lubna Lorena | Sugar Land, Texas

2012 Houston Affiliate
William P. Clements High School

Lubna Lorena has spent her career shaping young minds. She graduated from Lahore College for Women in Pakistan with a BS in Mathematics and Physics, and went on to obtain a MS from Northeastern University in both Mathematics and Information Systems.

Lubna has 17 years of experience teaching both math and computer science to middle school and high school students. While at Olle Middle School her algebra students consistently achieved the best results in the district. At Clements High School, Lubna began as a mathematics teacher and a mentor to both new teachers and to her students. In 2003 Lubna began teaching computer science and worked extremely hard to ensure her students have the best access to the opportunities CS provides. In fact, 5 of her students have been recognized by NCWIT in 2012 alone! In addition to the NCWIT Educator Award, Lubna has received the 2011 Teacher Recognition Award, and the US Presidential Scholars Program.

Kevin McKee | Goleta, California

2012 Central California Affiliate
Dos Pueblos High School

Kevin McKee received his BS in Engineering Technology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, in 1983. For over 20 years he worked as a Software Engineer and IT Manager, designing and managing systems in the avionics, medical device manufacturing, commercial MRP software, and undersea defense industries. After teaching AP Computer Science part time for 2 years, he left the business world for good in 2006 to teach full time. He often says about his decision to teach, “If you ask anybody on the street who made a big impact on their life, almost nobody would answer ‘The network guy at work’, but just about everyone will respond with the name of a teacher who had a big influence on them.”

Mr. McKee loves teaching CS and does it as hands-on as possible. He believes kids will learn the craft of programming by actually programming, not by listening to him lecture about programming. He is part of the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy, which features a remarkable 50% female enrollment. “We actively recruit girls, and many are amazed at what they can achieve but never really considered possible. It’s very empowering!” Kevin is very proud of his female students who go on to major in CS or related disciplines, keeps in touch with many of them, and notes that they are frequently at the top of their college classes.

In his spare time, Mr. McKee likes surfing, sailing, cycling, cooking, and “…mostly loves being with my family in Santa Barbara!”

Ryan Morgan | Watsonville, California

2012 Bay Area Affiliate
T. S. MacQuiddy School

This award marks the first time Ryan has been recognized for his work encouraging women, men, boys and girls alike in technology. “I am honored to be chosen as a recipient of the Educator award, just as I am honored to be able to work along side the brightest and most inspirational high school students in our district.”

Ryan graduated University California Santa Cruz with a B.S. in Computer Science and soon found fulfilment through helping underprivileged students improve their literacy and math skills through the use of educational software.

Ryan owes much of this award to his involvement with the Watsonville TEC program which has produced four Affiliate award winners, and one National award winner in just the last two years.

Watsonville TEC is a rapidly growing program that seeks to increase the representation of Latinas in careers of technology. To this end, students begin building an interest in technology and an appreciation for the importance of college as early as 5th grade. Currently Ryan is a teacher and co-creator of elementary level curriculum.

John Niebergall | Sherwood, Oregon

2011 Oregon/SW Washington Affiliate
Sherwood High School

John Niebergall’s accomplishments on behalf of his students are many. Over the course of John’s 26-year career in public education he has taught Engineering, Architecture, CAD/CAM, and Woodworking. In all of these classes, John has focused on providing his students with hands-on, contextual, real-world learning experiences.

In this context he has coached his students in robotics and taken them to the National competition where they were national champions. He has made contacts in the community and raised over $100,000 through grants and in-kind contributions. He has personally funded a Fab-lab with industry-standard software and state of the art prototyping equipment for his students. Subsequently, this has led to a student-run, school-based enterprise, thereby providing students with the experience of designing, developing, manufacturing, and marketing a series of products used within the community of Sherwood. 

John developed a program in 2009-2010 and proposed it to the administration in his building. The program would be a co-taught class in which girls would design, develop, and produce a product following the template he had created in his other classes. The response was overwhelming when the class was launched this year. Two sections were offered and both were immediately filled and a waiting list was created. Because of John’s efforts 60 girls are now studying Engineering and Construction with 60 more waiting to take the course next trimester. After 26 years of highly successful teaching, John still asks questions of himself and his program: What are the barriers keeping young women from taking STEM classes and what can I do to address this? The results speak for themselves!

Carlos Nodarse | Hackensack, New Jersey

2011 New York Tri State Area Affiliate
Bergen County Academies

Mr. Nodarse teaches core Computer Science and Technology courses in six of the seven schools which comprise Bergen County Academy since 2001. He has nurtured an interest in his female students in the areas of robotics, engineering, computer programming, and digital electronics. Mr. Nodarse also teaches computer forensics, networking, and computer service and support. He has developed classroom topics which range from the initial handling of computer tools to building a complete computer system which has generated great student interest.

Mr. Nodarse has introduced his students to mobile programming languages, and how digital electronics interphases with other emergent technologies. With supportive mentoring, his female students have participated in the Annual Panasonic Creative Challenge, the Toshiba NSTA ExploraVision Contest, and the Internet Science and Technology Fair. Mr. Nodarse has consistently fostered the working of female and male students together in projects involving technology and engineering thus expanding and reinforcing the student's concept of the working team.

Mr. Nodarse has a BS degree from New Jersey City University. Mr. Nodarse has completed additional accreditation in the CISCO Networking Academy Program (Instructor Training Program), and has certification to teach CISCO: CCNA 1-4, Discovery, Exploration, Java, IT Essentials 1 & 2, Panduit, and Adobe Web Design. Prior to working at Bergen County Academy, Mr. Nodarse worked in the technology industry at Arthur Anderson & Co, Anderson Consulting Firm, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), and American Bankers Insurance Group. Mr. Nodarse also ran his own consulting and computer service company for seven years prior to joining Bergen County Academy.

Lynne Norris | Glen Allen, Virginia

2012 Virginia/Washington, DC Affiliate
Deep Run High School

Lynne M. Norris currently is the Chairperson at the Center for Information Technology (CIT) at Deep Run High in Glen Allen, Virginia. In this specialty program Mrs. Norris leads innovative courses in technology that are rigorous, encourage higher-level thinking and provide practical applications to her students. Since joining the CIT in 2009, Mrs. Norris has introduced game design, to students in all grade levels. Game design has been incorporated into the CIT curriculum both as a way to excite students about programming and as a stand-alone course. Mrs. Norris has also introduced network security into the curriculum. Striving to provide the best software tools and education possible, Mrs. Norris is passionate about her students’ opportunities and success.

Mrs. Norris spent over twenty years in corporate America before following her lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. She holds a BA from Virginia Wesleyan College and received her teaching credentials through Mary Baldwin College.

Jill Pala | Chattanooga, Tennessee

2012 Tennessee Affiliate
Girls Preparatory School

Jill Pala has been teaching Computer Science classes to 7th to 12th graders at Girls Preparatory School in Chattanooga, TN, since 2006. Jill earned her BS in Computer Science from Xavier University and worked as a computer programmer for Intellysis Corporation for 4 years before making the switch to teaching. In addition to teaching, Jill is also the yearbook sponsor at GPS and has served the Tennessee representative for the Computer Science Teachers Association Leadership Cohort since 2009. She has been an AP Reader for the AP Computer Science Exam since 2011. Jill is committed to bringing the highest quality of Computer Science education to the students of her school while also advocating the same opportunity for every child in her local, state, and national community.

In her spare time, Jill dreams up ways to promote Computer Science. Most recently she produced a movie to highlight the importance of taking computer science classes. You can check it out here.

In the summers Jill escapes to the simple life in the North Woods of Canada as the Program Director for Camp Pathfinder, a boys wilderness canoe tripping camp.

Josh Paley | Palo Alto, California

2011 Bay Area Affiliate
Henry M. Gunn High School

Josh Paley is a Computer Science and Mathematics teacher at Henry M. Gunn HS in Palo Alto, CA where he is fortunate to have lots of smart, hard-working students.  He has helped to grow the computer science program there from 50-60 students to over 120 per year.  He is encouraged by the new highs in female students in both introductory and AP courses (29 total), but he remains frustrated that the percentage of female students is still appallingly low (still under 25%).

Josh thinks that a year of Computer Science should be mandatory to graduate from high school and is a member of the CSTA Leadership Cohort, a group of about 70 teachers nationwide that are trying to effect change to promote CS education.  He is also excited about partnering with UC-Berkeley on their pilot for a new AP CS Principles course.

Josh won a national fantasy baseball contest in Y2K and occasionally writes articles on baseball on the side; he is a writer for Ron Shandler's Baseball Forecaster 2011.  He is an avid indoorsman as he is allergic to things such as plants, dirt, and probably fresh air.  He enjoys board games and poker and is a ferocious Boggle player. Josh has an awesome wife, Suzanne, who does bioinformatics at SRI International and three amazing kids: Allison (age 14), Karen (11), and Trevor (9).  He thinks he is very lucky.

Jessica Patterson | Austin, Texas

2012 Central Texas Affiliate
Lake Travis High School

Jessica Patterson took her first computer science class in high school and has never looked back. After graduating from Baylor University with a BSEd in Computer Science, she resolved to teach others to enjoy computing and problem solving. She has been teaching Computer Science since 1995 and Project Lead the Way Digital Electronics since 2008. Working with parents, industry partners, teachers, and students on the Lake Travis Engineering Advisory Board, she has been able to provide students with real world experiences, facility tours in the area, guest speakers focusing on technology and applications, and college visits where the students are able to visit classes with engineering students. Ms. Patterson feels fortunate to make her living working with the smart, motivated students at Lake Travis High School.

Claribel Perez | Bayamon, Puerto Rico

2011 Puerto Rico Affiliate
Academia Santo Tomas de Aquina

Claribel Pérez has worked on innovative projects in areas of Technology, Engineering and Science at Dominico School System of Puerto Rico since 2006 when she began working as a 4th-8th grade science teacher and Science Program Coordinator at the Santa Rosa Elementary School. She coordinated the fundraising for the acquisition of a basic robot kit, she established the Robotics Club at the school, and she recruited female students to participate in local Vex competitions. She is currently working as a physics teacher at the St. Thomas Aquino Academy where she established the robotics club (ASTA-STEM Robotics Club) with Vex Robotics technology.

Claribel Pérez has been a Girl Scouts of the USA Troop Leader for the past ten years and she has taught the girls how to prepare digital presentations and videos while keeping as a priority their safety on the Internet. The Dominico School system recently appointed her Coordinator of K-12 Science Program. She is an active member of the Committee of the 7th Regional Science and Engineering Fair for over three years. Ms. Peréz aims to further increase the enrollment of young girls and teens full of dormant talents in areas of Chemistry, Physics, Engineering and Computer Science as well as Mathematics Education.

Tammy Pirmann | Erdenheim, Pennsylvania

2012 Philadelphia Area Affiliate
Springfield Township High School

Tammy Pirmann is the district coordinator for Computer Science and Business at the School District of Springfield Township, Montgomery County, PA, as well as a high school computer science teacher. Thanks to Tammy and many other people, all Springfield students are required to pass a course in computer science in order to graduate.

She teaches Computer Science at several levels, a Robotics course, Electronic Game Design and Development, Web Application Development, Computer Science Principles, and AP Computer Science. All of her classes focus on the immediate and 'real world' application of computing concepts. She is currently having a lot of fun teaching Android App development to a class that is 50% from underrepresented groups.

In October of 2010, Tammy went to Capitol Hill as part of  the release of "Running on Empty: The Failure to Teach K-12 Computer Science in the Digital Age" and the announcement of the Computing in the Core coalition. She was on a panel with representatives from Industry and higher education to talk about what a K-12 computer science curriculum looks like in action.

Kelly Powers | Marlborough, Massachusetts

2012 Massachusetts Affiliate
Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School

Kelly Powers is a teacher of Computer Science at the Advanced Math and Science Academy in Marlborough, MA. She has taught Computer Science for the past 14 years and serves as Computer Science Department Chair and curriculum leader at the Advanced Math and Science Academy, grades 6-12. Prior to teaching, Kelly worked as a large systems computing specialist for IBM, John Hancock, and Harvard University. Kelly is also the current co-president of the Greater Boston Computer Science Teachers Association Chapter.

As a passionate educator, Kelly’s goal is to engage all students in the joy of learning how to think computationally and build student’s confidence in solving problems. In particular, Kelly has taken advantage of many outreach programs to increase girls participation in computing. Her latest projects include building a Robotics team consisting of mostly 8th grade females and recruiting 30 high school females to participate in a 10 week “Technovation Challenge” sponsored by Iridescent Learning at Google Cambridge, MA. 

Debra Ramey | Greensboro, North Carolina

2012 North Carolina Affiliate
Weaver Academy of Advanced Technology and Performing & Visual Arts

Debra earned her B.S. in Business Education in 1989 from St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, MN, and began teaching typing classes in California.  In 1998 Debra began teaching Novell Network Administration classes when she began working in High Point, NC. Since she loves learning new things and providing unique options for students, Debra was trained in Microsoft, Red Hat Linux, Oracle Database Programming, and Java so that she could offer more options to students. Debra began teaching only Information Technology classes upon transferring to Weaver Academy in 2002. She became National Board Certified in 2003 and earned her M.S. in Instructional Technology from East Carolina in 2006. She also began teaching e-Commerce online at LearnNC in 2006 and helped with the transition from this organization to North Carolina Virtual Public School, where she still teaches as well.

Debra loves providing new opportunities for her students, so in 2005-06 she started an FBLA chapter and focused on IT events, where she has had state award winners and national conference competitors every year in IT competitions! Debra was excited to hear about NCWIT and an additional opportunity to really showcase her girls.

For several years Debra has provided an introduction to IT to girls through a summer Tech Girls camp for rising Freshman.  She has been a member of CSTA for several years and is a founding member of a new North Carolina CSTA chapter. 

In herfree time, Debra enjoys spending time with her three beautiful daughters, traveling and exploring new places, the outdoors, and reading.

Seth Reichelson | Altamonte Springs, Florida

2011 Florida Area Affiliate
Lake Brantley High School

Seth Reichelson is the AP Computer Science and Physics teacher at Lake Brantley High School in Orlando, Florida. He is the current SECME national champion (3 time champ), IBM's Mainframes North American teacher of the year, 2009 Bright house star teacher, 2009 air force teacher of the year and 2010 Florida's school boards innovation in technology winner and has won all Florida ACM high school programming contests in Florida for the past three years. Seth is married to Debbie, who is a pharmacist, and has an eight year old daughter, Lisa, who is in 2nd grade. He enjoys playing with other "furry kids," large yellow labs "Noodles" and "Moose".

List of Awards and Professional Accomplishments:

• 2011 NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Award 2010 FIU ACM Computer Programming Teacher of the Year 2010 IBM North American Mainframe Teacher of the Year
• 2009 Bright House Star Teacher of the Year
• 2009 Florida School Board Innovation in Technology Award
• 2008 Central Florida Air Force Teacher of the Year.
• 2010, 2009, 2006 SECME Engineering Mousetrap Car Design National Champions
• 2007 SECME Engineering Mousetrap Car Design Runner Up
• 2010, 2009, 2008 Won ALL ACM High School Programming Contests in Florida @ UF, UCF, FIU and Stetson (10 in a row)

Luther Richardson | Columbus, Georgia

2012 Georgia Affiliate
Columbus High School

Luther has been a classroom teacher for 15 years, and primarily teaches AP Physics, Physics, Astronomy, and AP Computer Science. Luther has expanded what his students do with the skills gained in the classroom through a co-curricular science and engineering group called the Columbus Space Program. Students from this group have invented new technologies, built 150 pound robots, and flown experiments of their own design in space since 2002. Luther has a physics degree from Auburn University, a M.Ed. in Science Education from Columbus State, and is completing a Masters degree in Systems Engineering from Georgia Tech. These activities are made possible by support from Luther’s wife Laura and daughter Hallie.

Todd Salesky | Brea, California

2012 Southern California Affiliate
Bea Olinda High School

Todd Salesky is in his 21st year of teaching full time in public schools. Originally, he taught mathematics for many years. With the emergence of object oriented/ event driven programming, he found the profound relevance of Computer Science and brought it to Brea Olinda High School. In 2005, he created the Global IT Academy. Global IT Academy is a four elective, small learning community/career pathway within the high school. As an academic program, it serves as a means for students to distinguish themselves through the skills that they have learned in the classroom. His learning philosophy is for students to apply their knowledge and skills through community service leadership.

He is proud that GITA is approximately 30% female which is over twice the national average for women in IT. He learned at the beginning of his Computer Science career that female students have an incredible eye for detail and creativity. Increasing the number of female students in his computer science classes has made his program very well rounded.

Chris Schlesselman | Sacramento, California

2012 Northern California Affiliate
Hiram W. Johnson High School

Chris Schlesselman went from being a Mechanical Engineer to teaching English overseas to now teaching Physics, Engineering, and Robotics for the Technology & Engineering Design Academy at Hiram Johnson High School in Sacramento. He believes that all students learn when they are given access to knowledge and skills as a tool for building something rather than a requirement for getting a good grade on a test. Through the process of designing and building things (both physically and intellectually) and the failures and successes that go with that, stronger, more empowered people are made.

Debra Smith | Gracemont, Oklahoma

2012 Oklahoma Affiliate
Gracemont High School

Debra Smith has been teaching computer technology for the past 19 years with the last four at Gracemont High School. She has her masters degree, is a Master Trainer and also serves as the technology coordinator and Chair of the Technology Committee for the district.

Debra believes it is important to challenge her students and encourage them to exceed beyond their expectations. Her Botball Robotics team competed in regionals and earned the opportunity to attend GCER and the International Botball Tournament in Los Angeles last summer taking home three awards.

When not teaching she enjoys visiting with her son, Logan, currently serving in the Navy and her daughter, Katelyn, who is expecting Debra’s first grandchild in August.

Greg Smith | Salem, Oregon

2012 Oregon/SW Washington Affiliate
West Salem High School

Greg Smith grew up and currently teaches in West Salem. After receiving his BS in Mechanical Engineering at Oregon State University, Greg returned to school to pursue a career as an educator. His first teaching job was at North Salem High School where he was fortunate enough to be able to work with an outstanding mentor-teacher, Don Kirkwood, as a computer science teacher. While at North, he started programs in Computer Support tied to the Students Recycling Use Technology (StRUT) program, North's PGE Electron Run and Electrathon car team, and North's Robotics program.

He later moved to West Salem High School, starting their computer science program. He has been working with West Salem's FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team for two years, coached FIRST LEGO League (FLL) teams for four years, hosted two FLL Qualifying Tournaments, coached FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) robotics teams for five years, coached VEX Robotics Challenge (VRC) teams for three years, and has hosted three other VRC events.

At home, Greg enjoys time with his beautiful wife and four children, helping coach youth flag football, soccer, and basketball teams. His family is also actively involved at church.

Ismail Turel | El Paso, Texas

2012 El Paso Affiliate
Harmony Science Academy

Mr. Turel is a Computer Science and Engineering teacher and College Counselor at Harmony Science Academy El Paso. He also coaches robotics teams and a UIL Computer Science team. Mr. Turel received the Adult Mentor/Coach Award in Tri-State FLL Robotics Tournament. The teams he coached went to the FLL World Championship to represent the State of Texas two times, in 2010 and 2011. His high school robotics teams won many different awards in several levels of competitions.

Marcus Twyford | Cincinnati, Ohio

2012 Ohio Affiliate
Mother of Mercy High School

Marcus Twyford is returning to teaching after forays into retail and healthcare IT fields; developing training and curriculum materials for Computer Based Training for over 1.5 million employees, supporting large scale enterprise networks, and developing systems integration software for healthcare interface engines in HL7. It is his prior years in teaching in Connecticut, Tennessee, and Arkansas, as well as his experience in industry that he brings to the classroom sharing the knowledge and skills his students will need to develop for college and career.

In 1986, Marcus and his brother started a small business in Canada, where they built and sold their first computer. He remembers the day he got the tech-bug, and he has never looked back. Technology it seems has always been in his blood. Now, teaching Business, Technology (Computer Applications) and Computer Science courses at the all-girl Mother of Mercy High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, Marcus continues to be energized to 'change the ratio' for women and show his students how technology will impact all of their lives, regardless of their interests of vocations.

"I was thrilled about the opportunities that lay ahead for our young women in NCWIT" Marcus recalls - "I had gone to the meeting at ISTE 2011 in Philadelphia, and met Ruther Farmer - and was so inspired about the wonderful things that were happening and being planned - I asked several of my students to apply for the incredible opportunity with the Aspirations Award, and to start networking with all the great people at NCWIT."

"It is an incredible honor to receive such an award," says Mr. Twyford, "and I am delighted to pass on the energy and enthusiasm of NCWIT and its members to all of my young women of technology students. I look forward to the opportunities that lay ahead for all women in technology. This year I will be adding robotics and 3D fabrication to my curriculum - let's kick some circuit boards!"

Alex Wiederkehr | El Paso, TX

2011 El Paso/Las Cruces Area Affiliate
Irvine High School

Alex Wiederkehr has BS and MS degrees in Science from Oklahoma State University.  He also has completed all of the course work for a MS in Biology from University of Texas at El Paso. In 1968, he came to El Paso courtesy of the United State Army Air Defense Command.  After playing with Nike Hercules missiles for two years, he went to work for the El Paso Independent School District for 41 years.  He has enjoyed teaching math, science and computer application courses for 35 years and Energy Manager for EPISD for 6 years.

As Energy Manager, this gave him a break from teaching to meet all the principals and head custodians in the district. It also provided him with a lot of exercise since it required going through the schools at night, weekends and holidays checking to make sure everything was turned off.  During those 6 years, the school district saved over 13 million dollars in utility bills.

During his free time, he taught Biology at the El Paso Community College and many one day workshops on Solar Energy for teachers at the University of Texas at El Paso which was sponsored by the El Paso Electric Company.

In 1980, he had the privilege to work with the El Paso Independent School District secondary Math and Science consultants to develop the Science Technology Program for Gifted 7th/8th grade students.  For the next 12 years, he never worked so hard.
For 34 years, he has coached UIL slide rule (prior to 1980) and calculator teams that went to regional and state math tournaments (almost) every year.

"Mr. Weiderkehr is an amazing teacher, because he realizes that people make mistakes. He believes in second chances and just re-doing assignments until you get it just right. He's not a teacher to feel awkward around and he's always all smiles; he never loses his temper. He's opened my eyes to the world of technology. Prior to entering that class I had no idea that there were so many possibilities one has with a computer; infact I'd say that I dreaded the thought of having a boring computer class, but he's made it a great experience for me and I can actually that I've learned so much already. Being a girl in Mr. Wiederkehr's class is great because he doesn't discriminate at all. I really appreciate that he believes in equal opportunity for everyone and he can relate to young women, because he has his own daughters and grandchildren. He never hesitates to share his personal life and experiences with us and in fact he does it quite often and somehow makes a lesson out of it."   –Christina Jeong

Linda Woessner | Southlake, Texas

2012 Dallas/Ft. Worth Affiliate
Carroll Senior High School

Linda received her B.S. in Mathematics with a Computer Science Minor at Virginia Tech in 1982. She began her career as a programmer and consultant at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, and became involved in education when her own children started school. She served as IT Manager at Oxford Falls Grammar School in Sydney, Australia for 8 years. After relocating to Texas in 2002, she moved to the classroom, and has been teaching AP Computer Science at Carroll Senior High School for 8 years. 

Linda loves challenging her students and thrives on providing opportunities for them to excel, evidenced by the championship Computer Science and Robotics teams she coaches. She is passionate about Computer Science, and wants to see more students, especially women, take computer science courses in high school.

Outside of the classroom, she founded the Dallas/Fort Worth chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association, and is currently pursuing a graduate degree in Technology Education Leadership at Lamar University.

“Many of my students continue their study in engineering or computer-related fields in college. I love the idea that I might have had a part in that. Knowing that I could have a positive impact on my students’ lives is what motivates me.”

Rita Woodfill | Helotes, Texas

2011 San Antonio Area Affiliate
Sandra Day O'Connor High School

Since 1986, Rita Woodfill has shared the love of computer science with her students. She started computer science programs at two high schools and built them into the largest programs in Northside Independent School District. For fifteen years, Ms. Woodfill taught in PREP, a summer activity-based program designed to encourage under-represented minorities in STEM areas. During this time, she was the first teacher to serve on the advisory board and authored the computer science curriculum used throughout Texas. Additionally, she co-authored an entire curriculum in C+ to encourage more interest in the high school programming course. To help her female students, she makes sure they are aware of, and apply to, summer programs such as First Bytes sponsored by UT. In addition, her students participate in robotics for FIRST FTC and TCEA. She is especially tickled that the O'Connor team that advanced to TCEA state consists of female programmers.

Amy Wozniak | Chicago, Illinois

2012 Illinois Affiliate
Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center

Amy Wozniak has been teaching computer classes for nine years, including the past six years at Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center, a Chicago Public School. 

She is very passionate about getting more girls involved in the male saturated field of computer science. Amy Wozniak tries to initiate interest by getting young girls to participate in an after-school technology club geared specifically toward girls. This club teaches them about various software programs and gets them more involved in community related technology programs. The girls participated in a program to rebuild computers from recycled parts. They have also competed in statewide technology oriented contests winning over $4000 in prizes.

When she isn’t teaching, Amy Wozniak likes to run half marathons, completing three in the past eight months. She recently ran the inaugural Hollywood Half marathon in California. She also likes to cook, bake, read and play sports.

Catherine Wyman | Phoenix, Arizona

2012 Arizona Affiliate
Xavier College Preparatory

Catherine Wyman has been teaching computer science and programming since 1989. She began teaching at Hawaii Pacific University in Honolulu, Hawaii and has spent 19 years teaching at various institutions of higher learning before joining Xavier College Preparatory (Phoenix, AZ) in 2008. Catherine teaches Computer Programming, AP Computer Science, and Video Game Development. Additionally, she serves as Program Director for Technology and Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) at Xavier. She is a member of CSTA, IEEE, and NFHS Coaches Association.

In 2008, Catherine co-founded "Girls Have IT Day!" with fellow Xavier teacher Frances McMahon Ward. This is an annual event at Xavier to engage, inspire and encourage middle school girls in science, technology, engineering and math. Over 400 middle school girls are mentored by over 100 high school students in hands-on STEM actives. The overall theme is "You can do it, too!" and the feedback from both groups of girls remains overwhelmingly positive.

Catherine also coaches Cross Country at Xavier. She and her husband, Bruce, have 3 children and they enjoy visiting national parks during the summer. Catherine is also working on running a marathon in every state.

Catherine passionately believes in encouraging girls in computer science and STEM. "Girls want to change the world. STEM skills give them a way to do that."