I want to help increase the number of students of color pursuing STEM fields and felt I would be able to do so as a high school teacher. I also wanted to pursue teaching for it is a profession about which I am passionate. In addition, I wanted to give back to my city of Newark, NJ. I would not have pursued being a physics teacher if it weren’t for the high school teachers that supported me during high school. All these factors led to me finding my interest and talent in helping students master physics.”

Deliris’s Story

Teaching Discipline

Physics

Why Physics

“Physics was one of my favorite sciences in high school. In addition, there is a lack of representation of women of color in STEM, specifically my demographic of being Puerto Rican.”

Professional Experience

Deliris worked as an undergraduate researcher at the New Jersey Institute of Technology for three years, studying the effects of chemotherapy on the stability of microtubules. She also worked as a teaching assistant in both calculus and physics for the Educational Opportunity Program at NJIT for two years. This summer experience as an undergraduate ignited her pursuit to focus on teaching as a profession.

Deliris will begin teaching at East Side High School during the 2019–2020 school year.

Hobbies

Deliris enjoys watching reruns of The Office, reading nonfiction and poetry, and playing Pokémon GO.

Academic Background

  • Montclair University (Master of Arts in Teaching)
  • New Jersey Institute of Technology (Bachelor of Science in Biophysics)