From science to teaching with Rachel Cuizon Quadara
Rachel (Cuizon) Quadara
Middle School Science Teacher
Our Savior Lutheran School
Livermore, California
Winner of the 2019 Expanding Audiences Scholarship
My pathway begins in my hometown - San Diego. I have always been a beach-lover: needing to feel the water and examine every shell. Bringing the underwater world closer to home, we can zoom into my childhood apartment where my parent’s owned the biggest aquarium that my little mind has ever seen. I contribute both of these to sparking my love and curiosity of the ocean.
Cal Poly SLO Marine Sciences Department hosting an Open Pier Day. Rachel sharing with the public some awesome facts about our local seastars!
Fast forward a few decades and I am off to college. California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo – HERE I COME! By this time, I have figured out that I enjoyed tutoring/coaching others and that I want to pursue teaching. At Cal Poly SLO, I took a course that would impact the rest of my career: Communicating Ocean Sciences to Informal Audiences (COSIA). I knew I have always loved teaching, but I figured out that I can combine it with sharing my passion for the ocean. I loved the course so much that I came back to be the Teacher Assistant the following year.
Figure A, featuring pictures Rachel captured for her senior research project (Commercial topical sunscreens are detrimental to the development of the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus by R. M. Cuizon and N. Adams). Here you see side-by-side comparisons of normal versus abnormal development.
Rounding out my last years of college, I joined the Adams Lab (shoutout to Dr. Adams and my fellow Sea Urchin Labmates!). My senior project looked at the effects a local sunscreen brand had on the development of the purple sea urchin. My ocean interests dived further into the impacts that humans have on the ocean. This carries into my marine education experience even today as there is always a way to connect humans and the oceans. I graduated with a B.S. in Biology concentrating in Marine Biology and Conservation. Extending through and after college, I gained hands-on experience at local aquariums/wildlife centers and after school ocean science programs.
Now the year is 2019. This past April, I got married and moved up north to the San Francisco Bay Area (slowly making my way up the California Coast). My journey so far has led me to my next step: becoming a formal science teacher!
Rachel at the Shoals Marine Laboratory Tour during the 2019 NMEA Conference in New Hampshire!
The 2019 NMEA Conference took place at a perfect time (the summer before I started teaching) and I was very fortunate (and forever grateful!) to win the Expanding Audience scholarship! The conference helped tremendously with my transition into the formal education world. Everyone I met was so incredibly welcoming and passionate about what they do. It was an inspiring trip and got me excited for my year ahead. Additionally, everyone was enthusiastic to share teacher/student resources or even first year advice. I left the conference full: emotionally and literally as my arms were filled with resources.
Participating in The Marine Mammal Center’s Ocean Ambassador Program allows Rachel’s students to have access to incredible marine lessons and resources. Just recently, they were able to see and feel these amazing marine mammal pelts in their very own classroom – an up-close encounter that the students were thrilled to have experienced!
My year as a formal educator has just begun and I am excited to take my knowledge of marine education and bring it into the classroom. My school is extremely supportive in wanting to pursue more hands-on science curriculum. This year, my 6th and 7th grade classes will be participating in The Marine Mammal Center’s Ocean Ambassador Program and my 8th grade class will be participating in the 2020 Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Competition.
I look forward to keeping marine education a part of my life and staying connected to NMEA. Thank you for the opportunity to share my story and please feel welcome to reach out and say hello or connect with me on LinkedIn!
Rachel teaches 5th through 8th grade science at Our Savior Lutheran School and this is her very first year as a formal educator. As she has studied and gained experience in the marine education world, she wants to bring my hands-on learning knowledge into the classroom. Her school is very supportive in wanting to pursue more hands-on science curriculum. This year, her 6th and 7th grade classes will be participating in The Marine Mammal Center’s Ocean Ambassador Program and her 8th grade class will be participating in the 2020 Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Competition. The year has begun and she is very excited to dive right in!
