LEFT to RIGHT: Wes Scott, Manager, Engineering Global Resources, Worldwide Engineering & Operations, Occidental Petroleum; Anne Ford, VP IPAA/PESA Energy Education Center; Brandi Fisher, Houston Middle School, Hobbs, NM.
On April 12, the IPAA/PESA 2018-19 Power Your Future Teacher of the Year was presented to Brandi Fisher, Houston Middle School, in Hobbs, NM. Each year an award is made to an exceptional educator involved with the IPAA/PESA Energy Education Center. This year’s recipient was one of the first teachers to participate in the new IPAA/PESA Middle School STEM Career Exploration Initiative.
The Permian Basin program, sponsored in part by OXY Petroleum, features digital and classroom discussions on STEM career exploration. Volunteers from both the Houston and Hobbs OXY offices presented to Fisher’s sixth-grade class about STEM skills and behaviors, the pathways to STEM careers, petroleum careers and the future.
The initiative allows students to explore 35 different career options in the industry. Studies have found that the middle school level is the best time to introduce students to STEM careers.
Mrs. Fisher also recently received a $15,000 grant from Devon Energy that will go toward the purchase of a 3D printer, iPads and other learning tools to enhance STEM learning for Houston Tech Lab students.
The IPAA/PESA 2019 Teacher of the Year runner up was Dorita Bekker, Bonham Middle School, Odessa. PESA is proud to support teachers like Fisher and Bekker, and their contributions to STEM Education.
