Hello, My name is Shannon. I am coming into a career in education, after what feels like a pretty fulfilling 15+ years exploring. I’ve done many things, and spent time in many cities, and in some other parts of the world. I’ve driven a Zamboni, and coached hockey; from really young kids, 4-5 year olds, to really old kids, 40-50 year olds. I’ve sold, marketed, and curated mid century art and design; getting to personally know many of the great designers, like Val Bertoia, Ron Arad, Frank Gehry, and Karim Rashid. All while working in NYC, Miami, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and LA; meeting many other truly interesting people along the way. Being able to speak with a designer, and ask them why certain decisions were made, or how do they organize their design process, was most enlightening. I’ve worked with a diverse set of clients in investment real estate, learning different attitudes about the global economy, and their associated risk vs reward models, and seeing how different people look at urban growth, based on experience in other cities.Why education? I think like any endeavor, someone looks to devote a whole lot of time and energy to, I think I can add value. I had a neighbor in Chicago, Joe Cytrynbaum, who worked as an educator, and as a founder of the Umoja Student Development Corporation in the Lawndale neighborhood, he was one of the happiest guys I knew, because he was consistently adding value to the lives of his students, helping them open up doors for themselves, and to realize their lives were not contained to the neighborhood they grew up in, but could expand into the City and the World. He wanted the best for everyone, so when he said he thought I should teach, I took it to heart.
Usefulness. I’ve always enjoyed working with kids. My first experience was in high school, when I volunteered to coach intramural hockey, both a 4th-5th grade team, and the High School Recreational League. What I learned working with kids that winter, was they all enjoy accomplishments, doing something useful to further a cause. I experienced this again in the late 90’s working with P.U.C.K. (Positive Upliftment of City Kids), a hockey team for kids on the westside of Chicago that I helped coach, and who played at a Park District Rink I managed. Because we were a rink in one of the poorest areas of Chicago, our zamboni would get taken away to be used at “more important” venues. This could have been a negative, but the kids made it a positive, manually shoveling snow from the prior skating session off the ice, and working in perfect harmony to carry 5 gallon buckets of water across the ice to lay a new sheet; they were almost as quick as a zamboni with nearly identical results and each one shared in the accomplishment of putting down a nice sheet of ice to play on, and each one of them felt useful, sporting huge smiles as they worked.
I hope by teaching science at READY Program that I can get students interested in examining their world and practicing inquiry in all their endeavors. Course curriculum will be based on the Next Generation Science Standards, which should help students who transfer schools be able to maintain their bearings.
I hope to make science fun, and relevant to their lives and aspirations by pointing out connections to the real world, and how science affects their daily lives.
Usefulness. I’ve always enjoyed working with kids. My first experience was in high school, when I volunteered to coach intramural hockey, both a 4th-5th grade team, and the High School Recreational League. What I learned working with kids that winter, was they all enjoy accomplishments, doing something useful to further a cause. I experienced this again in the late 90’s working with P.U.C.K. (Positive Upliftment of City Kids), a hockey team for kids on the westside of Chicago that I helped coach, and who played at a Park District Rink I managed. Because we were a rink in one of the poorest areas of Chicago, our zamboni would get taken away to be used at “more important” venues. This could have been a negative, but the kids made it a positive, manually shoveling snow from the prior skating session off the ice, and working in perfect harmony to carry 5 gallon buckets of water across the ice to lay a new sheet; they were almost as quick as a zamboni with nearly identical results and each one shared in the accomplishment of putting down a nice sheet of ice to play on, and each one of them felt useful, sporting huge smiles as they worked.
I hope by teaching science at READY Program that I can get students interested in examining their world and practicing inquiry in all their endeavors. Course curriculum will be based on the Next Generation Science Standards, which should help students who transfer schools be able to maintain their bearings.
I hope to make science fun, and relevant to their lives and aspirations by pointing out connections to the real world, and how science affects their daily lives.