My name is Zach Carpenter. The biggest proponent toward teaching was, interestingly enough, a teacher that had never taught me. However, I remember how he impacted many students in my high school by believing in them and giving them vision for their future. He inspired my friends to behave responsibly while having fun.

It was my Senior year when I built a house with this teacher and became close friends with him, but still never realized how many seeds that he had planted in me toward inspiring people. Shortly after my experience of buiding his house, I left for college and decided to follow in my brothers’ footsteps: to become an accountant. However, it wasn’t long afterward that I began to realize that I wouldn’t enjoy a career of office work; those seeds that were planted had turned into a passion to inspire people in the same way that I had been inspired. It was at this time that I decided to dedicate my life to teaching and inspiring youth.

On this educational journey I have encountered many experiences that have only served to solidify my passion as a teacher. I have:

-become a Noyce Scholar-

• where we have taken many trips to the coast to teach high school students and worked with groups of professionals (St. Edward’s Professors and Master Teahers) to refine and develope teaching skills.

-became a member of NCTM-

• where I have learned many new strategies for teaching mathematics and went to their National Convention in Philadelphia that focused on the implementation of technology into mathematics classrooms.

-assisted and taught classes-

• BTCS- a college readiness class that focused on equipping incoming freshman for entry-level mathematics courses.
• 10th grade geometry- an experience as a student teacher that provided me full ownership of three classes, their content, and gradework.
• Smaller internships- at Ojeda Middle School and Del Valle High School teaching 8th grade mathematics and 9th grade geometry.

I am now finishing up my certification to teach 8-12 mathematics by Dec 10, 2012 and have never been more excited to pursue my dreams as a professional role-model and teacher.