National Teacher of the Year to Visit Oxford, DeSoto Campuses

OXFORD, Miss. – Michelle Shearer, the 2011 national Teacher of the Year, will visit University of Mississippi campuses in Oxford and Southaven during a two-day event hosted by the School of Education beginning Tuesday (April 17).

Shearer, an advanced placement chemistry teacher who also specializes in deaf education at Urbana High School in Fredrick, Md., will have breakfast Tuesday with education school teacher candidates, and then hold forums with education students, faculty and K-12 leaders in the Johnson Commons ballroom at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. At 1 p.m. Wednesday, she will conduct a similar forum with students and faculty at the university’s DeSoto Center.

Named Teacher of the Year at the White House last May by President Barack Obama, Shearer was selected from 55 state and territorial teachers of the year and has nearly 15 years experience as an educator. Since June, she has served as an educational spokesperson around the country.

Shearer began her teacher career while still a pre-med undergraduate at Princeton University, where she used her sign language skills to volunteer at the New Jersey School for the Deaf.

Since then, Shearer has dedicated her career to working with students with attention deficit disorder, Asperger syndrome, dyslexia and dysgraphia, among other learning challenges. A proponent of STEM education, she also implemented an advanced placement chemistry program at the Maryland School for the Deaf, allowing students at the school to enroll in AP chemistry for the first time.

Shearer holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Princeton University and a master’s degree in deaf education from McDaniel College, and is certified in science and special education.