Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Connetquot Teacher Named
“Woman Educator of the Year”
Lori Forgione is a science teacher
at Connetquot High School teaching Living Environment
Honors, Regents, Inclusion, and Marine Ecology. Lori
has been selected by the American Biographical Institute
to receive the “Woman Educator of the Year Award
for 2008”.
Mrs. Forgione graduated from North
Carolina State University in 1984 with a B.S. in Forestry
and a Master of Arts degree from Stony Brook University
in May 1987. She worked for 3 years as a lab technician
at Stony Brook University doing research on In Vitro
Tissue Culture of daylily plants. Lori then moved
on to Brentwood High School teaching biology in 1987.
Mrs. Forgione was involved in the Science Olympiad
Team and coached JV softball. Lori was hired by Connetquot
High School as a chemistry teacher in February, 2002
and is presently teaching Living Environment and Marine
Ecology.
Since Mrs. Forgione has been at
Connetquot High School, she has been involved in Natural
Helpers. Mrs. Forgione has written curriculum for
the chemistry, biology, and ecology programs taught
at the high school. She has provided teachers with
workshops so that they could learn how to teach the
required labs for the regents with ease. Mrs. Forgione
has taught both the after school lab classes for homebound
students and the regents review classes. Mrs. Forgione
has served as a mentor to new teachers helping them
transition into the teaching profession.
Mrs. Forgione's most recent endeavor
is supervising a Hard Shell Clam Mariculture Grant
Program in which the students are growing about 200,000
clams to help revitalize the clamming industry on
Long Island. They will be planting the seed clams
that they raise over the summer in the Long Island
Sound. This grant was given by the Nature Conservancy
and Western Suffolk BOCES. Last year, Mrs. Forgione’s
grant proposal was chosen first over all schools in
Suffolk County. There are 26 students currently working
on this program from Connetquot High School. In addition
to being selected as Woman of the Year, Lori was selected
by the VIP Selection Committee to represent the Biltmore
Who's Who for Executives and Professionals in the
2008 membership book, the Manchester Who’s Who
for 2006-2007, and Who’s Who Among America’s
Teachers for 2004-2008. She was nominated to the National
Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine as a mentor and
educator for 2005-2008. Mrs. Forgione’s goal
is to expose as many of her students to hands-on science
and inspire them to want to learn more about science.
Lori Forgione is a member of the
Nature Conservancy, Sierra Club, National Wildlife
Federation, Humane Society, Defenders of Wildlife,
Arbor Day Society, Marine Mammal Conservancy, and
World Wildlife Federation. She lives in Islip with
her husband Tony of 23 years and her 3 children. When
she is not teaching, Lori enjoys going to the beach,
reading, and playing on a woman’s slow-pitch
softball team during the summers.
Lori Forgione is pictured receiving
congratulations from
CTA Vice President Doug Sposato
