Congratulations to Science and Math Teacher Extraordinaire, Mr. Gunderson, for being awarded as one of the 2023 Educators of the Year with the Chico Noon Rotary! He is beyond deserving of this recognition, and we are truly honored to call him a foundational member of the Inspire family 💜
Here is what Madame Principal Brown had to say:
“Scott has been an educator for most of his life, but I first met him thirteen years ago when we were both hired as teachers the first year Inspire opened. In that time, Scott has been a central driver in Inspire’s model of continuous improvement, exemplifying the fact that, in order for students to learn, teachers need to get better at their craft. For Scott, this focus on improvement was a deeply personal endeavor. As a new teacher, I was inspired watching this veteran educator who was a master at his content continually push himself and often teach outside his comfort zone. Historically, math and science have been gatekeeping subject areas, ones in which students with learning challenges get weeded out as they advance. For many of us, this is the first devastating reckoning with the idea that we are not smart enough or good enough. Scott drew on research-based practices to transform his assessments and grading protocols to provide support and hope for students and shift their mindsets about their ability to learn in math and science.
Scott’s work has also been crucial to our collective endeavor to reframe our grading practices as a school, work that continues as we research, plan, implement, analyze and revise our approaches schoolwide.
This year, Scott also joined our Equity team as an important contributor to the difficult conversation we’re having about how we support the students furthest from opportunity at our school. Scott is often the dissenting voice, one that does not slow down the work, but that forces us to look at our efforts with an open mind and a differing perspective. He asks the tough questions, ones that make us question our assumptions and dive deeper into what is truly good and useful for students.”
Thank you, Mr. Gunderson, for choosing to Inspire – every day, in every way! We love and appreciate you ✨
