Suzanne Otto
Suzanne Otto
Fellowship Placement: U.S. Department of Defense
Hometown: Paris, MO
Suzy Otto has spent the past 17 years teaching physics and chemistry courses at Paris High School in the rural community of Paris, Missouri. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Missouri – Rolla in 1991, and then accepted a position as a facilities engineer for ExxonMobil. After nine years working to optimize oil and natural gas production facilities around Louisiana and Texas, Suzy returned to graduate school at the University of Missouri – Columbia to pursue her Master’s degree in Science Education Curriculum and Instruction. She began her second career as a high school science teacher at Paris High School in 2003. Ms. Otto’s engineering experience gives her a deeper perspective on applying STEM in the workplace, which she has used to enrich her classroom lessons and in discussions with students who are exploring college and career options.
In her experience as an educator, Ms. Otto has noted that rural teachers and students face unique challenges in becoming aware of and accessing educational and career resources. Often, the remote proximity of rural communities isolates them from the people, industries, and organizations that supplement educational opportunities beyond the walls of the classroom. Ms. Otto’s mission as a rural educator has been to provide the kinds of challenging educational experiences and perspectives that prepare her students to be successful in college or career, helping them appreciate and even leverage the benefits that that their small-town upbringing has provided.
Suzy has participated in numerous professional development experiences, from a Physics Teachers’ Nanotechnology Institute at Cornell University to a Nuclear Science Workshop at the University of Missouri. Each learning experience has increased her capacity as a teacher in order to better serve her students. More recently, Ms. Otto’s focus has been on increasing her knowledge of the structures that define STEM education, with a goal of becoming a teacher-leader within her district and beyond. Ms. Otto was selected as a Teacher-Ambassador for the 2018 Building a STEM Leadership Alliance Summit, where she became inspired to further expand her influence beyond her classroom. Upon returning home, Ms. Otto worked with district administrators to define a new STEM Coordinator position, using research-based strategies to establish a model for what K-12 STEM education might look like in a rural school setting. Through the Fellowship experience, Ms. Otto hopes to combine new knowledge of STEM education with her rural school experience to develop structures and networks that support rural educators across the country.
