A mind for math,
a passion for teaching
“I can be the driving force behind a student who hopes to become a neurosurgeon, a rocket scientist, a physicist or a mathematician.” –Natasha Blanch
National program invites students to explore education
N
atasha Blanch began her first year at FIU as a finance major, but quickly realized she did not love crunching numbers. Blanch discovered her passion for teaching while working at a math learning center. After consulting with her academic advisor, she decided to give FIUteach a try. The FIUteach program is part of the National Math and Science Institute’s UTeach program, a nationwide secondary teacher preparation initiative which aims to place more than 9,000 urgently needed science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) teachers in classrooms across the country by 2020. The program enables STEM students like Blanch to earn both a degree in their major and a teaching certification without adding time or expense to their four-year degree program. FIUteach promotes student-centered, inquiry-based teaching and learning. Blanch and other students in the program actively work together to develop new content for lessons while making meaningful connections inside and outside the classroom. Students also rely on master teachers, who are extremely skilled and knowledgeable in their STEM field and have several years of experience teaching in public schools, to provide mentorship and guidance as they navigate through the program and prepare to enter into a teaching career. As the top producer of STEM degrees for Hispanics and one of the top producers of STEM degrees for all minorities, FIU has taken on the challenge of enhancing the recruitment and preparation of math and science teachers for communities that are as diverse as ours. Working together with MiamiDade County Public Schools, FIUteach serves as a pipeline of highly skilled and diverse teachers to the fourth-largest school district in the country. Now a senior, Blanch is set to graduate with a B.A. in mathematics and a teaching certification in the spring of 2017. She looks forward to inspiring her future students to ask questions, to look beyond their textbooks and beyond the classroom to find their passion.
FIUteach leverages FIU’s strength as one of the top STEM degree-granting institutions for minorities to build a pipeline of diverse and skilled math, science, technology and engineering teachers. Supporting FIUteach helps address both our critical teacher shortage and the goal of adding more STEM educated graduates to our community and work force. For more information on how you can get involved contact givetocase@fiu.edu | 305-348-4349.
FIUteach students Natasha Blanch (top) and Yasmine O’Neal learn to navigate the ins and outs of classroom teaching.