John R. Elyard
Trout Lake School
Trout Lake, Washington

“I have what I believe is the most unusual diversity of teaching experience,” says John Elyard, who has taught science in Kuwait, China, in the West Indies while on assignment with the Peace Corps, and on a wagon train with the Visionquest program for troubled youth. In his sixteen years of teaching, he has become known for his innovative projects. In 2002, Elyard won a Gates Foundation Grant to set up a weather station so his students can keep tabs on Trout Lake’s unique weather micro system. If that isn’t enough “real life” science for his students, he also developed the Career Awareness in the Biogical Sciences (CABS) program, which allows students to spend a day with a science professional like a wildlife biologist, nurse, or veterinarian.

Steven Westerside
Odle Middle School
Bellevue, Washington

“Creativity is the foundation of my classroom,” says Steven Westerside, whose seventh- and eighth-grade students connect science and technology in innovative ways, such as creating computer movies and building web pages. Westerside is the only teacher at Odle Middle School to have received a Gates Foundation Teacher Leadership Grant. For the past five years he has helped lead Odle’s Science Academy, an exclusive two-year program that includes guest speakers, field trips and projects like building robots and designing balsa wood planes. Westerside has been teaching science for seven years.