Archive: Around Town

At the Ithaca City School District's (ICSD) annual Convocation for all teachers and staff on Tuesday, Steven Manley, Executive Director of the Ithaca Public Education Initiative (IPEI), was joined by IHS Science Department Chair Carlan Gray and Dr. Luvelle Brown to present the Raymond C. Loehr Innovative Science Teaching Award to Carrie Brindisi of Ithaca High School . Brindisi has been a staff member at IHS since 2011 where she teaches a variety of Science Classes, including her own self-designed class, Natural Disasters. .

IPEI manages the Raymond C. Loehr Innovative Science Teaching Fund, established by the Loehr family to honor the life and teaching career of their father, on the occasion of his 70th birthday.

The Ithaca City School District identifies teachers who create innovative science learning opportunities that, according to Lily Talcott, ICSD's Deputy Superintendent, "consistently embody the principles of culturally responsive practices, work toward full inclusion, and embrace innovation within the science and transdisciplinary classroom."

Carlan Gray, Science Department Chair and Jason Trumble, Principal of Ithaca High School, nominated Brindisi because she "has shown incredible dedication to innovative programing, students as individuals, and creative and dynamic teaching. Carrie has been able to show great love and devotion to her craft, her subject area, her students, and her school, while holding herself, her colleagues, and her students to high standards.

"Arriving at Ithaca High School in 2011 after teaching middle school, this teacher had the challenge of large classes and a brand new co-teacher, a state assessment data hovering at a pass rate of 65%. After four years of consistent improvement, working with a dynamic PLC team and paired with drastic programing changes, the pass rate hovered around 90%.

"After brainstorming for years, she created a new course, Natural Disasters, designed to help students understand the social, political, and economic implications of floods, earthquakes, landslides, and global climate change. The relevance on this course was not lost on students as they participating in case studies, research, and analysis of media coverage of current events. This course highlighted her creative and innovative teaching along with her urge to bring a love of physical sciences to teenagers, a hard task!

"This teacher understand the art and craft of teaching. This summer, after spending several days exploring the Geology of NYS, she spent weeks tutoring a student who was one Earth Science Regents exam away from graduation. With patience, early morning "wake-up"reminders, breakfast, and multiple pep talks, she was able to be the quiet and humble reason for changing the life of a single student.

"Her humor, ability to form meaningful relationships with all students, and sense of urgency is consistently on display. She constantly asks herself "How can we make it so students see the relevance in what they are learning?" Several days ago we met with a Cornell professor to discuss setting up a data collection device for seismic activity at the high school so students could see Earthquake data from around the globe.

"As Carrie steps into a leadership role this year, she continues to share her ability to reach students and be patient for the unforgiving and mind boggling job teachers do. She continues to push for her own professional growth while paying attention to the details of what the entire school needs to move forward. And as she tells me every morning, 'It's going to be great.'"

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