Jon Moreno-Ramirez from Riverstone International School in Boise, ID, was recently featured in an article in Idaho ED News by Andrew Reed. Moreno-Ramirez is a current Partner in the Trust’s Partners in Science program.
At age 30, Jon Moreno-Ramirez gets butterflies in his stomach when he talks about science. He even has a forearm tattoo with a physics equation that explains the nuclear reaction inside the sun.
“I’m always looking for the reason why things happen,” said Moreno-Ramirez, a science teacher at Riverstone International School. “I’m constantly wondering about weird things.”
Moreno-Ramirez considers himself a math and science nerd. He walks around his classroom with a Rubik’s Cube in hand constantly solving the challenge and creating new patterns while teaching.
“I have to be fidgeting with something — this is nothing new to my students,” Moreno-Ramirez said. “It’s like science, every time I mess up with the Rubik’s Cube it’s a new problem.”
Moreno-Ramirez is preparing the next generation of scientists through teaching and real-world experience. He landed a $15,000 Partners in Science Program grant from M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust.
“I can’t wait to learn more and have this translate into further education for me,” Moreno-Ramirez said. “I’m along for the ride.”
Moreno-Ramirez will investigate the fundamental physical properties of nanoscale ferroelectrics and multiferroics in various devices, such as computer memories or microwave electronic devices. The grant program is to help high school science teachers obtain firsthand research experience that they can apply in the classroom.
“I never thought this would be a path I would take as a teacher,” Moreno-Ramirez said. “I can’t wait to get my hands on all the lab equipment.”
