*This article is featured in the Fall 2008 publication of Canadian Teacher MagazineMany high school students consider June the best and worst month of the year. On the one hand, it’s warm and sunny and the long exhausting school year is drawing to a close. On the other hand, it’s warm and sunny and the long exhausting school year never seems to end quickly enough! By that time, university students are out of class, and not only are students’ feet off the academic gas pedal, they’re out of the car. There is one condolence though – teachers have to stay in school even longer. It’s no wonder students often assume that teachers, too, cannot wait for their glorious two months off and away from teaching. Of course, most students have never met Ian Fogarty.
At Riverview High School, Ian Fogarty spends ten months of the school year immersed in science, teaching grade 11 and grade 12 students chemistry and physics. While science is a discipline with curiosity and self-motivation at its core, it’s often difficult to get students excited about raisin bun atom models or solubility rules. Facing this challenge every day, Ian teaches the fundamental basis of his subjects with the hope that he can spark a passion for science in his students.
In 2006 while teaching at Riverview high, Ian’s childhood high school in New Brunswick, he was offered a position as a faculty member at a summer enrichment program called Shad Valley. As a Shad Valley Teaching Fellow, he was already encouraging students from his high school to attend the program, and his enthusiasm for the program was growing. “When I was first offered a place at Shad Valley, I knew immediately that this was not going to be like a typical month of school,” Ian recalls. “Shad Valley clicked with me: here was a place where students were challenged and immersed in ideas that most don’t encounter until their undergraduate studies! I saw a program for high school students that prepared them for real life.”
Happily, Ian accepted the spot at the Trent University Shad Valley campus in Peterborough, Ontario. There, he helped run the intense four-week science, technology, and engineering enrichment program that recruits approximately 630 bright students nation-wide every year. Ian found himself once again surrounded by high school students for the entire month of July – not a typical holiday, but he was eager to immerse himself in all things Shad.
“Shad Valley students are creative, passionate, and driven. Their days are filled to capacity with challenging and creative projects and the quality of work they produced truly surprised me. I have taught under the notion that every student out there has tremendous potential, and Shad proved to me that there is a place where this potential can be reached and harnessed.”
Ian Fogarty, Program Director, Shad Valley UNB
Shad Valley Trent is one of twelve universities that hosts the program every July. For the past 28 years, students from across Canada and across the world have taken part in this life-changing, mind expanding adventure. This past July, Ian returned to Shad Valley again, but this time in his native New Brunswick.
As a Program Co-Director at the University of New Brunswick Shad Valley campus, Ian was able draw on his own experiences to build a challenging program. After receiving both his Honours BSc and BEd from Mount Allison University, he earned his MSc in Organometallic Chemistry from New Mexico State University, where studies led him to work for a research team at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility.
While he may be perceived as a Chemistry-type Indiana Jones, he has also been an influence for teachers as well. This year Ian was honoured with one of the prestigious Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence. The award recognizes teachers by promoting their innovative and successful teaching practices. In addition, Ian has completed work in the field of chemistry, and was awarded New Brunswick’s Innovation in Education Award. He is also involved outside of the classroom with the Outdoor Challenge Program, for students who are eager to experience an adventure outdoors, including rock climbing, kayaking, and outdoor living. In addition, some of his former students credit Ian’s encouragement towards their academic pursuits in fields such as engineering and chemistry, yet another testament towards his passion for teaching.
Ian’s teaching approach has always been to provide a solid work ethic and to lead by example. “Success is directly proportional to effort,” he has said. At Shad Valley, students are given the chance to take on new challenges, to harness their creative capacity, and to act on their talents to improve innovation in Canada. It is for these, and many other reasons, that Shad Valley has been such an important step in Ian’s professional and personal career. Shad Valley President Barry Bisson explains “Ian is an extraordinary person with a talent for teaching and inspiring youth. His award in excellence is well-deserved and he has worked hard for his achievements.”
“I encourage students who want to learn and challenge themselves to apply for Shad Valley. I also encourage teachers to promote the program to their students – they could change a young person’s future simply by bringing up Shad. Shad is an excellent place for students to receive a competitive advantage,” says Ian.
Indeed, many educational and career institutions consider the Shad Valley program as an investment in a student’s future, and recognize the program when considering applicants for program admissions, scholarships and careers. Shad Valley has over 10,000 alumni, including 18 Rhodes Scholars, several Top 20 Under 20 and Top 40 Under 40 recipients, as well as countless award winners in various career and education fields.
“Shad was very lucky to have Ian as a Program Co-Director this year. He brings to Shad the expertise and drive that students benefit from greatly,” says Barry Bisson, President of Shad Valley.
For Ian, he intends to stay with the Shad Valley program for many years to come. “There is no place I would rather be in July than at Shad Valley,” he said. “I could be on a beach somewhere, but this is much more fun.”
You can learn more by visiting the Shad Valley website,
http://www.shad.ca/ or by contacting
info@shad.ca.
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This article is featured in the Fall 2008 publication of Canadian Teacher Magazine
Attention Shad Valley Alumni!
