LaFayette Educator Receives National Certification

Congratulations go out to LaFayette Junior/Senior High School Science Teacher David Amidon, who recently earned the distinction of becoming a National Board Certified Teacher! Teachers who achieve National Board Certification have met rigorous standards through intensive study, expert evaluation, self-assessment, and peer review.

Mr. Amidon’s most recent achievement is just one of many in his 20 years as an educator. In that time, he has also taught high school classes, and has served as both a coach and advisor for many of the programs in LaFayette. Before becoming board certified, Mr. Amidon had been selected for the inaugural cohort of the New York State Master Teacher Program. He is a two-time participant in the Space Academy for Educators, returning as a global alumni ambassador. Mr. Amidon is also a National Geographic Certified Educator, a Certified AMS Teacher through the American Meteorological Society, a Teacher Ambassador for the National Center for Science Education, and a Solar System Ambassador through NASA/JPL.

In 2017, he sailed aboard the ship Reuben Lasker as part of its science crew through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration “Teacher at Sea” program. Mr. Amidon is a two-time finalist for the Paul DeHart Hurd Award for the National Middle Level Science Teachers Association and was awarded the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators from the Environmental Protection Agency and White House Council of Environmental Quality back in 2016. He is currently working with teachers and researchers around the country on the Stackable, Instructionally-Embedded, Portable Science (SIPS) Assessments project, after being nominated by the New York State Department of Education through the NYS Master Teacher Program. 

Through these pursuits, Mr. Amidon has been able to create unique learning experiences for his students. Classes have researched the impacts of industrialization on our watershed, helped produce an environmentally-themed concert with the Symphoria Symphony Orchestra, posted a gallery of infographics at Destiny USA, and worked with Unplastify last year with the National Geographic Educator-Explorer Exchange. LaFayette students have been highlighted on the noaa.gov website for investigating and predicting the level of ozone depletion.

The district hopes to recognize Mr. Amidon’s achievement during February’s Board of Education meeting. Please join us in congratulating Mr. Amidon on this tremendous distinction!

For more information on the program, please click here.