Academic Magnet High School teacher recognized by SC Academy of Science

COLUMBIA – A faculty member at North Charleston’s Academic Magnet High School today was named the South Carolina Academy of Science’s 2009 Teacher of the Year.

Katherine Lee Metzner-Roop, a teacher for 17 years, was honored at a joint meeting of the Academy of Science and the Junior Academy of Science in Columbia. April 12-18 is being celebrated as South Carolina Science and Mathematics Week.

Metzner-Roop was her school’s teacher of the year for 2003-04 and was named Junior Science Academy sponsor of the year for 2004-05. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in marine science from the College of Charleston/University of Charleston, with additional studies at The Citadel and North Carolina State University.

Metzner-Roop has been an adjunct professor at the College of Charleston for nine years. She teaches health and honors-level physical science and marine science courses at Academic Magnet High and is pursuing National Board teacher certification.

“She is a dedicated teacher who truly loves our school and works tirelessly on providing students with relevant and fun extracurricular activities such as camping trips, pep clubs and the Junior Academy of Science,” said science department chairman Murray Eicher. “She takes the initiative to deliver quality field trips for her classes and works to improve the quality of her teaching. All of her students go on to seek higher education.”

Metzner-Roop says she tries to “open people’s minds through science” and believes “there is nothing better than to introduce students to something they have never known, and to watch them as they experience the joy of discovery for the first time.”

She and her classes undertook a long-term research project to monitor water and soil quality around Noisette Creek, a marsh waterway that runs through the Academic Magnet campus. They presented their findings at the 2006 Coastal American Student Summit in Washington, DC, and spoke on protecting the environment before members of the President’s Cabinet, national lawmakers and world-renowned scientists.

Metzner-Roop receives a $500 cash award for teacher of the year honors, plus a plaque and an all-expense paid trip to the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting next February in San Diego.