The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are honored to have awarded the achievements of the 2010 $10,000 Life Sciences Educator's Award Columbus Scholar:

Derrick C. Wood

Chemistry Teacher
Conestoga High School
Berwyn, Pennsylvania

Teaching at Conestoga High School since 2004, Derrick instills the same passion for Chemistry that he experiences - by showing his students that Chemistry is not an exercise in futility, but is extremely relevant to their lives.

He authored Case-Studies for his High School Chemistry curriculum and uses them as an alternative and authentic way of integrating the lab component into Chemistry, giving his students the opportunity to experience science in the same way it is done outside the classroom.

Derrick has further stimulated interest through his innovative teaching methods and Independent Study projects. Derrick’s personal interests relate to Analytical Chemistry, and he has shared his knowledge and experience with numerous Independent Study students. By utilizing donated supplies and equipment, his Independent Study students took a motley assortment of parts from old, nonfunctional systems and built working Gas Chromatographs and High Performance Liquid Chromatographs. Once operational, a variety of authentic research experiments were completed using the newly revived pieces of instrumentation. These projects have given a wide variety of students the opportunity to obtain hands-on experience with instrumentation and techniques not typically observed or conducted until taking advanced courses in a college science major.

Derrick has given presentations at NSTA and ACS National Conventions where he shared his curriculum with teachers across the country. In Derrick’s opinion though, his greatest accomplishments are “the students that have graduated from Conestoga with a passion for science and have pursued college majors and careers as a result of the same love for science that I embrace.”

Mr. Wood received his BA in Chemistry at Drew University and a Masters in Chemistry Education at the University of Pennsylvania. Derrick is the Head Coach of Conestoga's Science Olympiad Team, and has consistently led his students to medal in the top 5 teams at the annual State Competition.

The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are honored to have awarded the achievements of the 2010 $10,000 Life Sciences Educator's Award Columbus Scholar:

Michelle Bagley

Biology Teacher
Centennial High School
Ellicott City, Maryland

Michelle has been an educator for 30 years teaching biology and research, a passion she developed doing science fair projects during her own school years. Michelle has written curriculum for the county and the National Association of Biology Teachers and has made numerous presentations for conferences and organizations on a variety of topics.

Michelle has been at Centennial High School since 1991. She currently works with students in the Intern/Mentor Program as part of the Gifted and Talented Program. In addition to teaching research to her AP Biology students, she also works with 9th grade Biology students and 8th grade students in a nearby middle school to challenge and foster a desire to excel in science and research.

Among her students, Michelle boasts winners in the Siemens Competition, Christopher Columbus Life Science Student Award, Intel Science Talent Search, Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and many others. Michelle has been honored as a Presidential Scholar Teacher, a Coca-Cola Educator of Distinction, and Intel Teacher of the Year.

She has also served on the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair Advisory Council and the National Council of the National Honor Society, and is currently working with Northrop Grumman Corporation with the Young Engineers and Scientist Seminars to promote students entering the field of science and math.

Michelle holds a BS in Biology and an MS in Education and certification from the University of Pennsylvania. She continued her education at the University of Maryland at Baltimore where she conducted experiments with andriamycin, a chemotherapy drug used to treat breast cancer.

The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are honored to have awarded the achievements of the 2010 $10,000 Life Sciences Educator's Award Columbus Scholar:

Ryan Templeton

Biology Teacher
Mathematics and Science High School at Clover Hill
Midlothian, Virginia

Byron L. Ernest was recruited to start Lebanon's Agriculture Department which now, in its 7th year, has four teachers and an enrollment of 584 students grades 8-12, the largest in Indiana. The flagship of courses of the program, taught by Ernest, are the Advanced Life Science courses in animals, plant and soil, and food science. These are duel credit courses with Purdue University College of Agriculture. Through teaching these rigorous agriscience courses, he learned we must reinvent our classrooms to be places where young people are challenged and engaged; understand what they study and why; and where they have a sense that they belong.

In cooperation with AgReliant Genetics, he has developed project/inquiry-based agriscience lessons where students are doing actual research, and publish their findings through the use of pod-casts and wiki sites. This transparency allows actual scientists from around the world critique the students' work.

Mr. Ernest was named the 2010 Indiana Teacher of the Year. This is the first time an Agriculture Instructor has ever been selected for this honor. He holds two Bachelor of Science Degrees from Purdue University in Agricultural Education and Animal Science, and a Masters in Science in Agricultural Education, also from Purdue. He is currently finishing his Ph.D. in Administrative and Teacher Leadership from Walden University.