There are no resources to display
Dwyer brings new experience to Science Department

St. Louis U. High welcomes the newest addition to the Science Department, science teacher Dr. Kathleen Dwyer. Dwyer taught science classes at Maplewood-Richmond Heights for 22 years before making the move to SLUH, and will now be taking on two periods of chemistry and two periods of biology. 

Dr. Kathleen Dwyer. Photo: Kathy Chott.

“I love teaching chemistry, and I’m excited about teaching biology this year,” said Dwyer. “I love what I do, and I’m really excited about making this transition.” 

Dwyer had actually applied to several different schools, but the curiosity and work ethic of the students at SLUH especially impressed her. 

“When she was interviewing she did a practice lesson with a chemistry class, and she was really well organized and did a lot of activities with the students. She made it fun, but also very engaging,” said Science Department chair Tim O’Keefe.

Awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) in 2013 and the Monsanto Outstanding Science Teaching Award in 2011, Dwyer is well-versed in science teaching as a whole, and has also passed on a lot of her knowledge to other teachers. The best part about receiving the PAEMST to Dwyer was getting to meet the other amazing teachers from other states, and being able to connect with them, a network she still keeps in touch with. 

“I'm very passionate about helping science educators be better educators because some of the old ways of teaching are not as effective for all students,” she said. “Trying to find ways to update teaching and teaching practices to make students more successful and interested in the sciences is very important to me.” 

Dwyer went to a Catholic high school herself, and got her biology and chemistry degrees from the University of Illinois before getting her master’s degree at Southern Illinois University and Miami University and then her doctorate at the University of Missouri St. Louis. Her degrees are in science and education. 

“We’re excited to have her,” said O’Keefe. “She has a lot of energy, she’s very positive, and she’s a very skilled teacher. You can tell she really cares about her students.”

 

 

 


 

 

 

No post to display.

Prep News – the weekly student-run newspaper of St. Louis U. High
Copyright ©2020 of St. Louis U. High's Prep News
No material may be reprinted without the permission of the editors and the moderator.