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Please join with the MCTM Board in congratulating our
2012 Miriam Schaefer Scholarship Recipients
Andrew League – Elementary, Senior, Michigan State University
 Andrew League graduated from Canton High school in 2009. He is currently a senior in elementary education at Michigan State University with dual teaching majors in Mathematics and English Language Arts and a teaching minor in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). Andrew is a member of the Global Educators Cohort Program within the College of Education at MSU, and is also a member of Alpha Phi Omega Community Service Fraternity, the Student Michigan Education Association and Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society in education. He has also previously worked in a cognitive development psychology laboratory, and currently works as a member of the Strengthening Tomorrow’s Education in Measurement (STEM) research team.
Andrew first got involved in education by volunteering at an elementary school in his hometown of Canton, Michigan during his junior and senior years of high school. During his time at Michigan State, Andrew has been fortunate to continue volunteering in several elementary schools, tutor students in a wide range of grades, participate in a study tour to China, and learn from mentors who are graduate students, professors, and practicing teachers. He will graduate from MSU in spring 2013 and intends to student teach in an elementary school in the Lansing area during the 2013-2014 school year.
As one professor says of Andrew, “His content knowledge along with his ability to understand and explain complex ideas make him well-suited to becoming an effective teacher.” Andrew hopes to use those skills to make mathematics understandable and enjoyable to all his students. After graduating, he hopes to teach in the upper elementary grades in a school with a diverse student population. In winning this scholarship, Andrew would like to especially thank Dr. Jack Smith and Mrs. Julie Nurnberger-Haag at MSU, and Mrs. Bonnie Goodrich of the Plymouth-Canton school district for their mentorship and support.
Emily Noble – Secondary, Junior, Alma College
 Emily Noble graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in 2010 and is currently a junior at Alma College. She was accepted into the Education program at Alma in February of 2012. She will graduate with a Bachelors of Arts in Secondary Education with a major in Mathematics and a minor in English. Emily believes students will best gain understanding of mathematics through visualization, experimentation, and exploration. She plans to incorporate technology into her instruction that will increase
2012 Miriam Schaffer Scholarship Recipients
student engagement and improve classroom management. Her most recent placement mentor commented that "she will have a great career as a mathematics teacher, and her future students will be greatly enriched through her efforts."
Beyond the semester hours required to attain her professional certification, Emily plans on earning a master’s degree in education once she starts her first teaching position. Her ultimate goal is to continually improve her instruction through best practices so that she can then improve student learning. Emily is aware that many students do not see the importance and relevancy of math in their lives and therefore have no motivation. She wants to impress upon her students how truly important lifelong math skills are, whether it be Calculus or Accounting and Finance. Emily wants to gain more knowledge in her subject area through continued university courses and workshops. As she continues her professional development, she hopes to have experiences that challenge her and shape her into the best mathematics teacher she can possibly be.
Emily Bianchi – Elementary, Senior, University of Michigan-Dearborn
 Emily Bianchi, a graduate of Lake Shore High School, St. Clair Shores, is currently a senior at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education, with concentration in Mathematics and Language Arts. Emily teaches pre-school at the University of Michigan-Dearborn Early Childhood Education Center. She enjoys working with young children, as well as elementary and middle school aged students. She learns from the students with whom she works, as well as her colleagues in the education program. One of Emily’s professors comments, “Emily has a very strong understanding of mathematics and she assists in clarifying ideas for her classmates.”
Emily plans to structure her classroom into a community of learners in such a way that allows students to develop powerful thinking strategies and an abstract concept of numbers. When asked about her goals for her future students, she replied, “I want to challenge children to question themselves and others in order to develop multiple strategies, critical thinking and problem solving skills.” In Emily’s classroom, she will expect students to communicate mathematics in a variety of ways such as written form, oral form, and through models and pictures. While studying mathematics she has found these forms of communication to be beneficial with elementary and middle school students.
Emily is grateful to receive the Miriam Schaefer Scholarship Award and is looking forward to participating in the conference and becoming a member of MCTM.
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Scholarships 
ARIEL LOSSING
LEAH WISCHMEYER
ASHLEY TAGLAUER
