TMA Awards Outstanding Science Teachers

April 29, 2016

The Texas Medical Association (TMA) named six Texas science teachers winners of the 2016 TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching. Three first-place prizes were awarded today at TexMed, the association’s annual conference, in Dallas. Three second-place awards will be presented in upcoming local ceremonies. TMA recognizes elementary, middle school, and high school teachers for the awards. These educators help create tomorrow’s physicians by inspiring students in the field of science.  

First-Place Winners:  

Lauren Paquette of Hobby Elementary School in Houston, Nancy Brown of Charles Baxter Junior High School in Everman, and Kenric Davies of Sherman High School in Sherman are this year’s elementary, middle, and high school first-place winners. (See winner bios below.) TMA awards each top recipient a $5,000 cash prize, and each winner’s school receives a $2,000 resource grant toward its science programs.  

Second-Place Winners:

Second-place winners are Marisol Rodriguez of Achziger Elementary School in Mesquite, Chelsea Atwell of Austin Academy for Excellence in Garland, and Finny Philip of Berkner High School in Richardson. Second-place winners’ schools each receive a $1,000 resource grant to enhance science classroom learning.

TMA physicians believe this award, and others like it, encourage the outstanding science teaching techniques that inspire Texas students to succeed. Only 36 percent of Texas eighth-graders have achieved proficiency in science, according to the National Science Foundation’s Science and Engineering Indicators 2016 report. Through this award, TMA hopes to help improve these numbers by recognizing innovative teachers and providing them resources to continue motivating and engaging students. Eventually, TMA doctors know, some of these inspired students will choose medicine as a career. Several TMA physician leaders were taught by past recipients of this science teaching award.

“The very best teachers are relentlessly devoted to their students’ learning and development. These special educators are who we honor each year with the TMA Science Teacher Award,” said Deborah A. Fuller, MD, president of the TMA Foundation, TMA’s philanthropic arm. “Teachers like these help ensure that students appreciate the role of science in understanding our world and how to use scientific information to make daily decisions.”

 Science professionals from The University of Texas Charles A. Dana Center chose finalists from all the applicants, and physicians from TMA’s Educational Scholarship, Loan, and Awards Committee selected the winners.  


2016 STA Winner Photo
 Left to Right:  Deborah Fuller, MD - TMA Foundation President; Lauren Paquette of Hobby Elementary in Houston; Nancy Brown of Charles Baxter Junior High in Everman; Kenric Davies of Sherman High School in Sherman; and Diana Fite, MD - TMA Board of Trustees and Chair of Educational Scholarship, Loans, and Awards Committee.

Lauren Paquette — Elementary School First-Place Winner

Mrs. Paquette teaches kindergarten through fifth grade science lab at Hobby Elementary School in Houston. “I want students to know that science is in everything,” she said. Mrs. Paquette strives to include hands-on activities wherever possible to show her students how science can be engaging ― and even fun. She encourages her students to think critically and learn from their mistakes. “In my lab, failure is not an option and although we may struggle, we should never give up.” Her colleagues say Mrs. Paquette constantly looks for ways to do more for Hobby Elementary and its students. She won several science grants for the school, and through her leadership, Hobby Elementary was chosen for the National Wildlife Foundation’s Eco-Campus Partnership Program. The program teams an American school with a Taiwanese school to collaborate on an eco-friendly project.

Nancy Brown — Middle School Winner

Mrs. Brown teaches eighth grade pre-advanced placement (AP) science at Charles Baxter Junior High School in Everman. Labeled as learning disabled and diagnosed with attention deficit disorder in her childhood, Mrs. Brown knows firsthand the need for caring, motivated teachers. “I knew from the depths of my soul that I needed to teach — and be the teacher that I never had,” she said. Hands-on learning plays a central role in Mrs. Brown’s lessons. She demonstrates Newton’s law of inertia by balancing a spinning tennis ball and wire contraption on her head, then letting her students take turns with the device themselves. When she teaches topography, her students create detailed 3-D topographic maps. When she teaches electricity and circuitry, her students build and solder their own electronic device. “I love to challenge my students and do things that make them feel like they are really doing something amazing. They are active participants.”

Kenric Davies — High School Winner

Mr. Davies teaches 11th- and 12th-grade AP physics and astronomy at Sherman High School in Sherman. “The look in a student’s eyes when they realize how something works or get the answers to questions like ‘why is the sky blue?’ or ‘how do magnets work?’ gives me a sense of purpose, like I am directly participating in the construction of our future,” he said. Mr. Davies cultivates student interest and understanding of science, and emphasizes community involvement. He sponsors the school’s Engineering Team and the Astronomy club, and puts together a Family Science Night every year, where students demonstrate science in action to their families and community. “I strive to show my students that they will not stop learning when they leave high school; they will continue to learn all throughout their lives and this is something that should excite them.”

The 2016 TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching are made possible with a grant from the TMA Foundation, which is supported through an endowment generously established by Dr. and Mrs. Ernest C. Butler and gifts from physicians and their families.

TMA is the largest state medical society in the nation, representing more than 49,000 physician and medical student members. It is located in Austin and has 110 component county medical societies around the state. TMA’s key objective since 1853 is to improve the health of all Texans. TMA Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the association and raises funds to support the public health and science priority initiatives of TMA and the family of medicine.

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Contact:  Brent Annear (512) 370-1381; cell: (512) 656-7320; email: brent.annear[at]texmed[dot]org

Marcus Cooper (512) 370-1382; cell: (512) 650-5336; email: marcus.cooper[at]texmed[dot]org

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Last Updated On

March 21, 2018

Originally Published On

April 28, 2016

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