Derek Dennis
I’m absolutely exhilarated to be here and look toward all the wonderful times to come. It is such a privilege to be teaching such wonderful students here at BA. Prior to Brevard Academy, I worked for NC State University’s The Science House at the Mountain Satellite Office. The Science House is an outreach program that supports teachers and students throughout the state. I traveled throughout WNC to schools assisting teachers and students utilize the latest STEM technologies. From 3D printing, robotics, MakeyMakey, Coding, etc., I have a strong knowledge and working experience with the latest in STEM. While I really enjoyed what I was doing, I kept hearing the classroom calling me back. And after COVID, I realized I needed to be back in the classroom more than ever. So, here I am, back in the classroom once again and absolutely I love it.
Most of my formal teaching was at nearby Rugby Middle School. I taught science for nearly a decade (mostly 8th grade). In the middle of my tenure, I took a year off to stay at home with my newborn daughter in which I also worked for The Australian Education Authority as an educational consultant. I did remote learning way back before COVID in 2011. In 2008, I became the first Kenan Fellows from WNC and partnered with PARI- Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute. I returned to PARI after leaving Rugby Middle as a Science Educator. Additionally, I worked with Zaniac as Instructional coach teaching & helped with curriculum development. I worked for The Science House for nearly 7 years before leaving for BA.
A little bit about myself, I’ve lived here in WNC for over 25years. I’m originally from the Pinehurst-Southern Pines area in the Sandhills of Eastern NC. After High School, I took a gap year and attended Flensborgarskólinn (The College of Flensborg) in Hafnarfjörður Iceland. From cooking an egg on top of a volcano, to working at the Hard Rock Cafe in Reykjavík, and even sleeping under the Northern Lights; it was the most adventurous year of my life (to date). In addition to Iceland, I interned for a Danish Biochemical company for two summers in Paris, France. I love to travel. Go Carolina! I’m proud to say, I Harked the Sound, “I'm Tar Heel born, Tar Heel bred, And someday, I'll be a Tar Heel…...”. I graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 1995 with a degree in Biology with minors in Astronomy and History. I was so very lucky to have worked at UNC’s Morehead Planetarium presenting star shows under the same dome and using the same equipment which was used to train all the Mercury through Apollo-Soyuz astronauts. My head has always been up in the stars.
It’s not lost on me that I’m a Tar Heel graduate that worked for NCSU, home of the Wolfpack (at least it wasn’t Duke).
I grew up in a science environment, my father was a chemistry professor, so I spent loads of time in his chem labs. I got my first pair of safety goggles at age 5, broke my first beaker at age 7, and made it to the State Science Fair 2x by age 10. I’m not a classically trained teacher. Instead of a teacher learning science, I’m a scientist that became a teacher. I just don’t teach STEM, I live and breathe it. I’m also a certified YouTube Mechanic, a Master Maker, and a Tinker Thinker.
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