Teachers should be a guide to help students discover the world around them and a support system for helping students pursue their ideas and passions.”

Isabella’s Story

Teaching Discipline

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Science

Why Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Science

“I choose this discipline because I wanted to share my passion for the natural world with my students.”

Professional Experience

Isabella grew up by the beach in Southern California and fell in love with the ocean at an early age. She pursued marine science in her undergraduate work and soon after, took a job teaching
at the Catalina Island Marine Institute’s outdoor science camp. In this role, Isabella taught hands-on science labs and led snorkels for visiting middle school and high school students. It was here that she fell in love with teaching and helping students connect to the natural world around them.

Isabella left teaching to pursue a master’s degree in Environmental Science at the UC Santa Barbara Bren School. Here she worked on a project to minimize ship strikes against whales off the California coast, a project with NOAA to model possible conservation areas for their National Marine Sanctuaries program, and with a local school district to plan environmental themed lessons for high school students. Although she loved working on conservation projects, she deeply missed working with students and returned to teaching to bring her passion and expertise for environmental science back to the classroom.

Isabella began teaching at New West Charter High School during the 2018–2019 school year in a hybrid learning program aimed at giving high school students more flexibility to pursue their interests outside of the classroom. She hopes to help students think critically about the role of science in confronting the environmental and social issues the world will face in their lifetime.

Hobbies

Isabella enjoys scuba diving in California kelp forests, trying new foods while traveling, and stand-up comedy.

Academic Background

  • University of California, Santa Barbara (Master of Education)
  • University of California, Santa Barbara (Master of Science in Environmental Science and Management)
  • University of Washington (Bachelor of Science in Aquatic and Fishery Science)