7th Grade Center – Susan O’Dell, science

Science teacher Susan O’Dell was named the 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year for the Union 7^th Grade Center.

“I began teaching in 1987. I did my student teaching in Union and found myself back where I ‘started’ when I re-entered the classroom in 2015 at the Union 6^th/7^th Grade Center,” O’Dell said.

She said, “I continue to work as a teacher in Oklahoma because our current students have no less potential than the students whom I taught 35 years ago. Much has changed in our students’ lives: our culture, the pace of life, and our daily relationship to technology. What hasn’t changed is that these students are the innovators, leaders, parents, and workforce of the future. They need us to be successful because we need them to be successful.”

O’Dell said she enjoys watching her students working together.

“I like collaborative activities where I can watch and hear students develop ideas and communicate about science to solve problems together,” O’Dell said.

Educational background:

• Degrees: Bachelor of Science – Secondary Education, Science Emphasis – Oklahoma State University
• Certifications: Biology, Anatomy and Physiology, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science, English as a Second Language K-12, Middle School Science, Botany, General Science.
• Continuing Education:  Southeastern Oklahoma State University – Master’s Degree Candidate graduating Summer 2023 in Curriculum and Instruction with a dual emphasis on Science and ESL