Rebecca Grella
Rebecca Grella
Fellowship Placement: U.S. Department of Defense
Hometown: Northport, NY
Dr. Rebecca Grella is a scientist, educator and photographer from the Brentwood Union Free School District located on Long Island, NY. For the past 21 years she has taught at Brentwood High School. Dr Grella completed her Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in 2012 from Stony Brook University. She also has a B.S. in Biology, M.A. in Applied Ecology and Educational Leadership Certificate from Stony Brook University. Prior to teaching in Brentwood, she studied in the rain forests of Madagascar. Her work with teachers and students in Madagascar led to her becoming certified as a New York State teacher in Chemistry, Biology and General Science. In Brentwood, Dr. Grella developed a rigorous environmentally based high school science research program servicing grades 10-12. The program has garnered national recognition as students have been invited to the Ellen Show, attended the White House Science Fair, and most recently worked at the White House. Dr. Grella has secured over two million in grant funds to drive research and STEM education in the Brentwood Union Free School District. Dr. Grella built a university lab in a high school to be certain that all students had equal access to innovative STEM. Using this lab, Dr. Grella’s high school research students have garnered over 15 million in college scholarships to Ivy League and Tier I research institutions. The lab also serves as a training ground for district STEM educators and engages educators in workforce development. Dr. Grella has a partnership with the Hitachi-Inspire program which has placed a Scanning Electron Microscope in the Brentwood Research Lab. Dr. Grella’s passion for photography and imaging led her to develop the FujiFilm sponsored project Dear Brentwood www.dearbrentwood.com, a platform for students to share their narratives through visual images. Additionally, Dr. Grella developed Let’s Science That! Podcast series engaging young scientists in sharing their scientific stories www.letssciencethat.org. Dr. Grella has received numerous Legislative and Senate Proclamations for her work in the Brentwood community, is recognized as a Stony Brook 40 under 40 and has delivered keynote addresses. Dr. Grella was a science advisor for Nickelodeons Go Diego Go Season 4, is a previous Society for Science and the Public (SSP) Fellow and Lemelson-MIT InventTeam educator. Dr. Grella sits on the Stony Brook University Diversity Equity and Inclusion Board, is an advisory board member for the Distributed Teacher & Leader Education (D-TALE) Programs at Stony Brook University, is involved in the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council, Long Island STEM hub, works with New York State Education on selecting teachers for the Presidential Award for teaching, and volunteers for the Stony Brook Cancer Center. Dr. Grella’s central belief is that zip codes should never define people. To this end she is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation for Equity Resources for Community-based Need, (FERN). Dr. Grella’s work at Brentwood High School has proven that STEM is a tool that can be used to narrow achievement gaps and build bridges.
