Jim+the+teacher



So that's a picture of me and Leroy the most famous, largest and craziest mule at Bryce Canyon National Park. I think about Leroy a great deal. I'll tell you the full story when we meet. In the mean time, think about what a mule is, how it came to be, and what it does. Is it an animal or a machine?

A bit about me...

I was born and raised in The Bronx, New York. My childhood, the 1960s and 1970s, was a tough time to live there. There was crime, blackouts, Son of Sam, and a garbage strike. However, I lived in a wonderfully diverse neighborhood and learned a lot about life. It helped make me who I am today. My father was a NYC firefighter who had to often work nights and weekends. We missed him then, but that meant we did have time with him during weekdays when other dads were at work. Often, he would take my Mom, brother and me to the Museum of Natural History, The Bronx Zoo, or walks through The New Botanical Garden. I trace my love of science to those adventures. That and watching cockroaches with a magnifying glass. My Mother was an at-home mom who read constantly and always wanted to debate and discuss. She was never satisfied with the simple explanation, her mind was just too active. I'd like to think I've followed in her footsteps, and perhaps her brain waves.

I attended Fordham Prep (a Jesuit High School) and Fordham University where I majored in Biology. I actually did not know what I wanted to do with my life but just followed my interests. During graduate school at the State University of New York at Buffalo, I realized that I like teaching about biology more than I like doing research and the life plan became clearer.

Before becoming a high school teacher I did research at Beth Israel Hospital, and taught Anatomy & Physiology and Pharmacology at Northeastern University. I began my HS teaching career 21 years ago on Cape Cod, then moved to Kingston, MA and have spent the last 9 at Sharon High School. I've had the opportunity to teach everything form Earth Science, to Chemistry to Ecology to AP Biology. I'm not sure I've ever felt like any of this was "work". Spending my day with students is a joy. This past year I was honored as the MA Biology Teacher of the Year.

I've been lucky to be able to travel and explore during my life. I've backpacked around Europe twice, driven and camped across the USA with my children twice and been to China twice. I appear to like to do things in pairs.

Five years ago I was looking for a professional development opportunity in biotechnology. I was able to connect with Dr. Natalie Kuldell at MIT. She wanted to develop a high school curriculum in the new field of synthetic biology and BioBuilder was born. I'm proud of that work and excited to be able to share my experiences with biotechnology and synthetic biology with you.