Fellow Profiles

Biography

Nicole LaDue is a high school Earth science teacher from John Jay High School in Cross River, New York. Nicole LaDue has been teaching Regents-level Earth science for six years in public schools in New York State. Believing that students learn best if they feel the content is relevant to their world, Nicole set off a wholesale transformation of the Earth science curriculum at her school. After convincing administrators and colleagues, she modified the curriculum to a cohesive series of hands-on activities and field-based experiences. Through presentations at conferences and publications in geosciences journals, Ms. LaDue has introduced her innovative curriculum to schools around the state. She is, for example, a contributor to the National Science Foundation's Digital Library for Earth Science Education.

"Classroom teachers often have a myopic view of the larger educational system. Although we experience how the system functions, we do not get to see why it has been constructed the way it is," she noted. "Ultimately, my goal in pursuing the Einstein Fellowship is to learn how the government works so that I can find new ways to improve education."

Nicole coached the Science Olympiad club at John Jay HS and has advised several other student organizations over the past few years. She has won grants to develop new lab assignments for her students and to participate in professional development programs to keep up to date with the latest in geoscience research and teaching. She earned a Bachelor's in Geology from SUNY Albany and a Master of Arts in Teaching degree from Cornell University.