Teacher of the Year 2008-2009

For Warren Neff, a math instructor at the Bartlesville Mid-High School, teaching isn’t the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Armed with his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics, he spent the first half of his professional career in the corporate world, serving as a research geophysicist. But when he lost his job, Neff decided to explore some different career possibilities. Though not a passion at that point, he did have some experience with teaching. He served as a teaching assistant while doing his undergraduate and graduate work at Emporia State University in Kansas. He had worked with the new hire training program while serving as a research geophysicist as well.

So, freshly armed with his teaching certificate in 2003, Neff applied to become a math instructor at the Mid-High. Though the administrators had some initial concerns about his lack of classroom experience, they brought him aboard. Those concerns quickly dissipated. Neff established an almost immediate rapport with his students and was able to use his corporate experience to show them how the math skills they were developing could pay off in the real world.

“The greatest contribution that I bring to the education table is my perspective,” says Neff. “With over 20 years of industry experiences, I can bring to the classroom real life examples of why my students need to know certain math skills and where they are used.”

In his six years as an educator, Neff has made a very positive impact at the Mid-High, where he was recently named the school’s 2009 teacher of the year. With the honor, he will vie with 12 other candidates from throughout the Bartlesville Public School District for the Teacher of the Year crown. The eventual winner will be revealed on Monday, Feb. 23 during the 2009 Teacher of the Year Ceremony in the Fine Arts Center auditorium on the Bartlesville High School campus. A pre-ceremony reception is scheduled to commence at 5:30 p.m. with the main program set to begin at 6 p.m.

Neff is a strong believer in the practice of enlightening students about the practical applications of math. At the Mid-High, he often teams with science instructor Terri Bryan and together they create lessons which meld the math and science concepts which they are teaching.

“Many times,” says Neff, “I can dovetail off of Mrs. Bryan’s science lessons to demonstrate the use of math in solving everyday problems that most students would never connect to math or science.

“Being successful in the classroom is the greatest accomplishment any teacher could hope for.”

In his classroom, Neff works to allow his students the utmost opportunity to learn and grow. He focuses not just on the assigned lessons, but life skills as well. While he wants them to learn particular math skills, he focuses on the importance of simply being able to take notes and organize them, also. Those are skills that will help them in Neff’s class but will carry over to other classes and eventually the real world as well.

Neff works to connect with his students as well. He can often be seen at Mid-High sporting events, concerts and contests as he roots on the students. In the classroom, he conducts himself in a manner that can serve as a positive example for his students.

“My actions, attitude and behavior toward a student are a reflection of me,” says Neff. “What I expect of my students, I model in myself.”

Outside of the classroom, Neff has served as a judge in the Bartlesville district science fair for more than 30 years. He has made many stops in elementary schools as “Mr. Science Man,” explaining simple concepts to the youngsters and helping to pique their interest. He is the president of the Bartlesville District United Methodist Men and the past president of the Oklahoma Conference of United Methodist Men.

While working as a geophysicist, he had several articles published and made presentations in China, Norway and Mexico as well as in several locations throughout the United States.

Neff is a member of the Bartlesville Education Association and has attended several advanced placement workshops as he works to hone his teaching skills. He has worked on some special projects for the Bartlesville Public School District, including the demonstration of how the NovaNet program can be successfully utilized in the summer school setting and the benefits of co-teaching, whereby regular education and special education instructors work side-by-side in the classroom.

Neff didn’t originally set out to become a teacher. But now that he is one, the benefits are being reaped by his students and fellow educators at the Bartlesville Mid-High.