10/18/22- State House Update
- October 18 2022
- By: info@njcfe.org
- 0 Comment
Ocean County Educator Named 2022-2023 State Teacher of the Year
October 12, 2022 | nj.gov
Pictured: Christine Girtain | Photo Credit – theminione.com
The New Jersey Department of Education today (10/12) announced that Christine Girtain, a Science Teacher and the Director of Authentic Science Research at Toms River High School North and South, has been named the 2022-2023 New Jersey State Teacher of the Year.
Christine, a graduate of Toms River Schools herself, has been teaching science for 28 years, including Earth Science, Biology, and Authentic Science Research. The Authentic Science Research program at the Toms River Regional School District is a three-year elective program that allows students to pursue and conduct independent research on a specific science topic that interests them. As the director, she has guided student projects ranging from the effects of fruit seed extracts on bacteria, to bioengineering E. coli. Her students have connected with Penn State researchers to learn about microbes that may block the spread of the Dengue and Zika viruses, and they have been to an immersive research program in the rainforests of Costa Rica.