The Concord Consortium’s Teacher Ambassador program commemorates our 25th anniversary by recognizing 25 outstanding teachers who have included our digital inquiry resources into their STEM classrooms. We congratulate them on their innovation and creativity.

Alison Pflanz, Groton Dunstable Regional Middle School, Groton, MA

Alison Pflanz is excited by the abundance of different educational technology resources available online. She exclaims, “There is so much room for growth and learning for teachers and students to make each school day the best it possibly can be!”

A class trip to Washington, D.C. was a transformative experience for this 8th grade science teacher. She was thrilled to visit the Library of Congress, “the most amazing building” she’s ever been in. Not only was she delighted to see the Gutenberg Bible exhibit and Jefferson’s Library, she describes the artwork on the ceilings, floors, walls — everywhere — as “breathtaking.”

Alison has always been passionate about education, in particular about getting students fired up about STEM, just as her teachers had done for her. Her high school AP environmental science teacher introduced her to climate change and global warming, inspiring her to major in environmental science in college. This past year she had the opportunity to incorporate lessons about the weather in her classroom as part of the Precipitating Change project.

The curriculum includes a virtual storm passing through the classroom. Students act as atmospheric scientists, collecting weather data and organizing it into maps to predict future weather conditions. “It was really exciting to see students working together and interacting with weather in a genuine way with the use of technology and various hands-on phenomena,” says Alison.

She enjoys teaching with materials that motivate her to “provide students with the best opportunities to learn while being engaged and interested.” And she’d love to see more resources that are scaffolded for all students to meet their various needs.

Alison enjoys crocheting and needlepoint, and dreams of a trip to the Maldives or a cross-country road trip to Arizona. She’ll just have to watch the weather when she travels.

Favorite ice cream: Cookies and cream