I am very pleased to recommend Dr. Katherine Heavers for the Global Teacher Prize. I was a 12th grade student in her class from 2014 to 2015. The course was called Human Anatomy and Physiology, but that name does not do everything she taught me justice. In her classes, she sets aside five to ten minutes for students in one of the most competitive N.J. schools to relax with yoga techniques. Reinvigorated, students listen to a quote from Dr. Heavers and relax for a minute of peace, possibly the only minute of silence besides sleeping that the students get all day. For the rest of the class period, she focuses on both biology and the character traits like integrity and tolerance. The great depth of …show more content…
Dr. Heavers integrates positive psychology techniques, which have been shown to improve student health and performance, into her classes. She treats all students as individuals instead of as one unit. She helps any student who needs it, whether with academics or personal struggles. Her joyful smiles, which have brightened countless days for me, are given to any student in need and are as valuable as the biology she teachers. Dr. Heavers has taught ESL classes; she treated ESL students with the same contagious energy and level of respect that she brings to other classes. When she set up a trip to the Bodies museum in NYC, she invited any students to go because she believed that all students should learn about the body. She was also willing to pay the fee for the disadvantaged students who could not afford the …show more content…
Each year, members of the community gather at the HAPpy Museum, a night full of exhibits by Human Anatomy and Physiology (HAP) students. The exhibits show how beautiful and delicate the human body is. Instead of making it another assignment, Dr. Heavers encouraged students like myself to “curate” the museum and gain both valuable education and valuable leadership experience. The students connected with prominent community figures, advertised the museum, and ran the event. Presenting and enriching the information changed me more than reading the information out of a textbook would have. The museum made many in the community to reconsider their own treatment of their