Teacher Tuesday Week 17: Lorie Delizo, 7th + 8th grade Science Teacher at Caliber Beta Academy.

Above, Lorie is pictured with our 8th graders engaging in a closing day circle discussion about Transgender bathroom laws. 

Lorie Delizo is our science extraordinaire and content lead at Caliber Schools.  She teaches 7th and 8th grade science at Caliber Beta Academy. In her classroom you will see labs, rigorous 'college style' lectures, and a comfortable, close-knit culture.  She comes to us as a Bay Area native and former teacher at KIPP and Alt School. 

A quote from Lorie's coworker at Caliber Beta Academy: "I have not met a person more fully committed to ensuring the best education possible for her students. Her high expectations for herself, her students, and her peers have made her such an amazing teammate. She's also just overall awesome and I feel really privileged that I have the opportunity to work with her."

All about Lorie: 
I'm a Bay Area native that was born and raised in San Francisco, and at this point I can't imagine calling anywhere else my home. After high school I almost said yes to a spot at UC Berkeley, but instead decided that I wanted to spend some time in a new city for a few years by attending UC San Diego. It was at UCSD that I did two things really well: 1) I learned a bunch of science, and 2) I became really involved in student activism on campus. While all the other biology majors decided to become doctors, I ended up deciding to pursue an M.Ed and career in education. It felt like the right choice, given my commitment to social justice and my desire to do something that would positively impact youth of color. After my first year teaching in San Diego, I returned to the Bay Area to fully settle down and teach. I spent 8 awesome years teaching science at KIPP: Bayview Academy in San Francisco, 2 years teaching science and running a school site for AltSchool (a private school and tech startup, also in San Francisco), and after that finally found my way to Caliber Beta. During that journey I also lived in a bunch of places: Daly City, San Francisco, Oakland, and now Richmond where I live with my wife (also an educator) and dog (not in education, he's just a chihuahua). I'm glad to be at Caliber working alongside some of the most dedicated teachers you'll ever meet, teaching a group of some of the most curious and dynamic students the Bay Area has to offer. I also feel particularly special because I'm the only teacher who will have taught a core class to both 7th and 8th graders this year! 

A recent interview with Lorie: 
What is your favorite thing about teaching middle school science at Beta? 
I really enjoy when students get into the labs we do in class. It's fun to see them get excited about being hands-on, collecting data, and having those "a-ha moments" that you can only get from doing true science. 

What was your favorite subject growing up? 
I've always liked science the most. 

Did you always think you were going to become a teacher? 
I actually had no idea until right before graduation my 4th year of college. 

Favorite candy bar or sweet treat?
I'm an ice cream person nowadays, especially when it comes to fancy ice cream.

If you could go on a dream vacation, what would you do + where would you go? 
I would probably try to relive my honeymoon in Hawaii, and I would do as many outdoor things as possible because Hawaii is a magical, beautiful place.

What is your favorite thing about the Bay Area (or specifically about Richmond!)? 
In terms of the Bay Area, my immediate family is here and that is really important to me! As for Richmond, I've only been here for a year and I feel like I'm still getting to know it. Right now my favorite thing about Richmond is my Crossfit gym; it's a collection of amazingly nice, encouraging people (second only to the Caliber staff).

What is one fun fact that most people don't know about you? 
I take a language class every Sunday because I'm trying to improve my Tagalog...which has made it really hard to learn Spanish (which I'd like to also learn) since my brain can only deal with learning one language at a time. There is a tiny bit of overlap though, which is nice.

Come visit Caliber Beta Academy to see Lorie and her scientists in action!