Building Citizen-Scientists - Teachers Honor Teachers
- Mandie Bentz, Maumee Middle School
Whether helping students expand the tree canopy of our community, bioblitz our urban prairie, or use data to draw conclusions, Mike Dick builds new teams of citizen-scientists!
“Mike’s most outstanding leadership happens right in his classroom. He inspires students to be inquisitive, persistent, and engaged through constant hands-on laboratory learning.”
-Mandie Bentz
Mike Dick, a seventh-grade science teacher at Maumee Middle School, is an exceptional educator whose leadership has influenced and inspired students, colleagues, our district, and the community. Mike worked in concert with the Toledo Zoo to create the region’s first campus urban prairie and utilizes it to engage students as citizen scientists as it flourishes. Our students use the prairie as an outdoor laboratory where they can be curious, share observations, and assess actions. Students test the soil, measure rain, see the impact of fire, and determine what species our prairie might be missing. Its success has inspired the creation of dozens of other urban prairie sites at schools throughout the area.
Mike collaborates with various local organizations to provide students access to expert resources that enhance their learning: tagging monarch butterflies, testing our soil, examining our atmosphere, and cleaning up the Maumee River. In each experience, students are given opportunities to think like scientists, utilizing data they collect and research from published sources. Students use this as a jumping-off point to consider local policies and make decisions about how they will operate as a part of our broader community.
Mike Dick and colleagues with a group of school children in Costa Rica during his Fund For Teachers Fellowship.
As an MHJF Fund For Teachers Fellow, Mike brought lessons from his professional development in Costa Rica to the classroom, demonstrating his passion and making himself a better resource for our student-scientists. Mike is currently working with the local city council to execute a tree canopy expansion project that allows students to select trees, planting locations, and care plans to ensure success. Students engage in both science and citizenship in this process: determining the best trees to plant based on research and interviews with arborists, creating public announcements to garner more seeds to grow the types of trees they’ve selected, and presenting their findings and plans to the school board. Students are truly seeing how their efforts will change the landscape of our community.
Mike consistently leads in the building, district, and region by participating in countless committees and organizations. He crafted digital curriculum materials that are used throughout northwest Ohio through the NWOi3 initiative. He has helped to create the roadmap for OTES 2.0. Though these leadership qualities and investments are impressive, Mike’s most outstanding leadership happens right in his classroom. He inspires students to be inquisitive, persistent, and engaged through constant hands-on laboratory learning. Mike’s seventh-grade classroom allows students to experience science in many exciting ways. He is frequently honored by high schoolers who invite him to their senior night as their most influential educator. Mike Dick’s classroom provides all students the opportunity to learn deeply!
Teachers Honor Teachers
The Martha Holden Jennings Foundation launched a new program in fall 2022 inviting teachers to recognize a colleague they know is doing exceptional work in the classroom.
In the above post, Mandie Bentz expresses her admiration for fellow teacher, Mike Dick. Thank you to both educators for your dedication to students and for taking the time to showcase what it means to deliver challenging, innovative, and student-centered lessons that result in powerful and deep learning.
Through the Teachers Honor Teachers Program, The Foundation is seeking Ohio public school teachers to share great things about a teaching colleague in an Ohio public school that ensures deep learning for students. If we choose to post your story, we will award $500 toward that teacher's classroom for their great work and $500 toward your classroom for honoring their excellence. Apply here.