Schools
Quarry Lane School Teacher Named Teacher of the Year at ACSEF
Science teacher, Ms. Jessica Zenker Nasseri, was named "Teacher of the Year" at the recent Alameda County Science and Engineering Fair.
This is the second consecutive year in a row that Ms. Zenker Nasseri has earned the honor.
Having won the Teacher of the Year award last year, Ms. Zenker Nasseri was genuinely surprised and honored to receive the award again. “I was really not expecting to win the ACSEF Teacher of the Year award this year,” she says. In addition to teaching middle school science, she teaches the “Science Competitions” in Quarry Lane’s middle school program and works with all middle school students entering a project in the fair.
“I’m incredibly passionate about teaching science and believe it’s my calling,” she says. “I truly enjoyed teaching science in the Bay Area, where the value and importance of science are deeply recognized and appreciated by the community.”
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Quarry Lane School’s Department Head of Science and instructor, Dr. Jita Ghosh, describes Ms. Zenker Nasseri as “a dedicated middle school science teacher who brings kindness and patience to her classroom every day.”
“Her supportive and engaging approach inspires curiosity and a love for learning. We are truly fortunate to have her on our team!”, says Dr. Ghosh.
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In addition to winning the award, Ms. Zenker Nasseri was also selected by the ACSEF to chaperone the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) finalists from Alameda County, including Quarry Lane School junior, Roneet Dhar, to the ISEF in Columbus, OH in May. “Attending the ISEF is a dream come true—one I never dared dream to imagine,” she says. “I’m deeply grateful and beyond thrilled for this incredible opportunity."
This year’s ACSEF marked the first time in Quarry Lane School history that students won 1st place and Grand Awards in both the middle and high school division. In the middle school division, Quarry Lane had 19 participants and earned one 1st place, eight 2nd place awards, eight 3rd place awards, and two 4th place awards. In the high school division, Quarry Lane had 22 participants and earned three 1st place awards, four 2nd place awards, ten 3rd place awards, and five 4th place awards.
Quarry Lane eighth grader, Yookta Pandit, also won the Grand Award in engineering for her project “Reading the Brain: Using MRIs for Early Detection of Dyslexia.” Junior, Roneet Dhar, also earned the Grand Award in Engineering for his software project, “Stellar Tracer".
