Jennifer Boyd
Position: Environmental Science Teacher
School: Westlake High School
School District: Conejo Valley Unified School District
City, State: Thousand Oaks, California
About the Nominee: Jennifer Boyd was nominated by a student, Grant Barclay.Mrs. Boyd is one of the most valuable teachers one could meet, hands down. Her care for students and her passion for science set her apart. She not only teaches environmental science at the AP and Honors levels; but she actually practices the concepts she teaches her students.Grant has been one of Mrs. Boyd's students for the past two years. During that time, he has learned many different ways to reduce one’s environmental footprint. Mrs. Boyd teaches by example, whether she's packing zero waste lunches, using recycled paper for quizzes or leading campus cleanups. Grant states that he has never had a teacher who changed his lifestyle choices or perception of the world this drastically. Every day, Grant notices ways to live a more eco-friendly life, and he has an outlet to help him do so. He's not the only student to feel Mrs. Boyd's impact. Around the Westlake High campus, one can find her previous students recycling, using reusable water bottles and being more conscious of the natural world around them. Her influence is school-wide and has helped Westlake High become an environmentally-friendly school.As a senior, Grant is taking Honors Environmental Field Study, where students take the skills and knowledge they learned in AP Environmental Science and apply them to their community. Mrs. Boyd has done an amazing job of running this course. She coordinates many community projects, field trips, guest speakers and course work while still finding a way to teach her students ways to better their environment.Mrs. Boyd is mentor who has greatly changed the lives of every student around her. She makes a majority of her pupils fall in love with environmental science. Even the students who don't like science leave class every day wondering about the world around them and their place in it. Mrs. Boyd is an incredible LifeChanger in her community!
[nominee_videos nominee_email="jboyd@conejousd.org"]