Congratulations to Dean Gilbert and Josiah Jones

CSTA is pleased to announce the winners of the 2012 Margaret Nicholson Distinguished Service Award, Dean Gilbert, and the 2012 Future Science Teacher Award, Josiah Jones.  The recipients of the awards will be honored at the Awards Breakfast during the 2012 California Science Education Conference in San Jose on October 20, 2012. To purchase tickets for the event, go online today.

Meet the winners:

Many of our readers are familiar with the passion and drive with which Dean Gilbert works for the improvement of science education in California. Not only does he work hard, he has been successful as well. The letters of recommendation for Dean were numerous and glowing. Here are a few excerpts:

Dean has been in the field of education for 38 years. He exemplifies the true meaning of the word “educator”. He served as president of CSTA and is, or has been, the guiding force behind most of the state’s growth in the field of science education. He was also instrumental in developing the state’s high school integrated science education curriculum.

He has built the LA County Science Fair into a tour de force. There are corporate sponsors and hundreds of volunteers who help make the event happen. Student winners move on to national competitions, and win scholarships and recognition. Most importantly, the Science Fair is a very public recognition of student interest and talent in science and engineering. The LA County Science Fair has evolved into this high profile event because of Dean’s contributions.

Mr. Gilbert is an extraordinary educational leader with a unique ability to work effectively with diverse groups to solve problems and reach consensus in a productive manner.

He created numerous teaching resources while at LACOE that he has share with other COEs and teachers throughout the state. Along with Tim Williamson he created a science safety training DVD, a multilingual science dictionary to help teachers with some of the 50+ languages spoken in LA County, training for the California Science Framework, the Science Textbook Adoption Toolkit, and NASA curriculum linked to California standards. 

He has been instrumental in providing statewide leadership in the field of science education. His knowledge of how students learn and what instructional strategies work has impressed me.

I consider Dean to be one of California’s finest educational resources. 

Dean is synonymous with quality education and the joy of learning. His personal integrity is beyond reproach. If he gives his word to a program, you can be guaranteed that the work will be done–on time–and that it will be of the highest quality. He expects no less from those he works with, and uses his interpersonal skills to provide a caring environment for those that work with him. He is dedicated, conscientious–and fun! Indeed, his sense of humor and timing give him a flair that few can match.

CSTA has a long tradition of selecting EXCEPTIONAL awardees for the Margaret Nicholson Award. Dean Gilbert should be among those so honored.

It is for these reasons and many more that Dean Gilbert was selected at the winner of the 2012 Margaret Nicholson Distinguished Service Award. Click here to learn more about the award and view a list of past recipients.

Josiah Jones  has a BS in Environmental Studies and a BS in Physical Geography from UC Santa Barbara. He completed his student teaching at Wilson Classical High School in Long Beach Unified School District teaching environmental science and oceanography. A quick perusal of Josiah’s resume will show you that he is a student who has done much more than simply complete a degree program and earn a credential. He looks to get involved in professional  development opportunities and is eager to use what he has learned in the classroom.

Josiah is an eager and highly dedicated educator. As a Noyce scholar, he was a constant contributor in our seminar
discussions and he showed his passion for teaching through thoughtful questions and comments. He is clearly a caring
individual and I am confident that he will be an asset to any school that he becomes a part of as well as to the teaching profession. I can recommend him highly for the CSTA future teacher award. – Anna Brochet, Robert Noyce Scholars Program Coordinator, SAS Center at CSULB.

In my twenty-five years of teaching, Josiah is one of the most outstanding if not the most outstanding student teachers I’ve had the pleasure to work with. His energy and enthusiasm are quite impressive. He constantly threw himself wholeheartedly into his assignment and tirelessly went above and beyond the call of duty to attend extracurricular activities to the delight of his students. His rapport with students and vast knowledge of the subject matter ensure me that he will be a tremendous asset to the teaching profession. He will be sorely missed by me, my fellow staff, and his students. I look forward to following his successful career in the future. – Steve Willie, Master Teacher, Wilson Classical High School.

Congratulations Josiah on your accomplishment, it is with pleasure that CSTA recognizes you as the 2012 Future Science Teacher of the Year. The $1,000 prize that accompanies this award is provided by SeaWorld San Diego. We thank them for their contribution.

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Written by California Science Teachers Association

CSTA represents science educators statewide—in every science discipline at every grade level, Kindergarten through University.

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