Beverly Owens, an eighth grade teacher at Crest Middle School in Shelby, engages students inside the classroom with an adventurous style of teaching that propels the students to a deeper understanding of science. She is the coach for the school’s Science Olympiad team and sponsor of the Environmental Club and uses experience from science trips to add a personal touch to the content she teaches.
Dustin Bridges, the assistant principal at Crest Middle School wrote about in his nomination letter:
Our entire school was recently abuzz and it wasn’t for a dance or championship basketball game—the typical reason for such a frenzy among young adolescents. The reason for the excitement was the First Annual Geologic Parade: A parade where all eighth graders dressed as a whale, brontosaurus, or algae—among other things. From there, students (aligned chronologically) made laps around our walking track as younger students, parents, teachers, and community members gawked at student costumes, read display posters, and contemplated the wonders of life. This parade—which managed to get traditionally disengaged students engaged—exemplifies the love for science that Beverly Owens inspires daily in her students.