This award goes out to all of the students and people who have done so much for me to even be considered for this great honor. It validates the work that my students and I have done together to understand the important environmental issues that face our country and world. It also speaks to the work that my colleagues and I have done to improve STEM education for underrepresented groups.

Cary James Bangor, ME | 7-12, Science, 2015

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

Cary James has taught at Bangor High School for 17 years. He teaches Advanced Placement, Honors, and Credit Recovery Chemistry classes to 10th–12th grade students. His students have excelled in national and international science competitions including the 2010 National Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP), the 2011 Bjorn von Euler Innovation in Water Scholarship, and the 2016 first place INTEL Science Talent Search “Global Good” award. Mr. James has a passion for improving the quality of water for people in developing countries and has focused student research on water sanitation, conservation, and remediation. In the classroom he works to differentiate instruction for students using an evidenced-based inquiry approach. He has received numerous teaching awards including the Siemens Award for Advanced Placement Teacher of the Year (Maine 2009), Pulp and Paper Foundation Maine Teacher Award (2009), the Francis Crowe Society Honorary Engineering Degree from the University of Maine (2010), New England Institute of Chemistry Maine State Teacher Award (2011), the New England Water Environmental Association Public Educator of the year Award (2013), and the 2014 Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers K-12 STEM Literacy Engineer-Teacher Partnership Award. Cary earned a B.S. in chemistry from Westfield State College and a M.S. in plant pathology from University of Maine.

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