Three Voices: How has the Biology Department Evolved?

By: Livia Basche & Yael Mehler.

Would you consider working at Stuyvesant, or any other school?

Mr. Lee: “They tried to recruit me for years, and I was tempted, but I see the difference and I am staunchly loyal to our school.”

Mr. Lee went on to specify that he is loyal to the institution and educational vision of Bronx Science and the leadership that helps to maintain a mission of fostering student growth.

Mr. McNickle: “I would consider going there, but I’m happy here, so I don’t want to.”

For McNickle, who commutes from Riverdale every day, “the change in landscape is not quite as daunting as the commute.” McNickle does, however, want to teach somewhere where he was once a student.

“There is one place that I would like to go and teach before my career is over, and that is Hunter.” He went on to elaborate how Hunter’s teaching philosophy differs from Bronx science. Hunter was, “‘Hello, I’ve learned an awful lot about this topic and now I'm here to share that knowledge with you.’ Bronx Science is, ‘Let's discover this together.’” Both styles have merit, and McNickle incorporates aspects from both into his teaching.

Chomet: “I guess I would consider working somewhere else, but I have no intentions to change where I’m working right now because I’m very happy here…”

Chomet is open to change, but Bronx Science is the place for her. She’s connected to the school as a student and as an alum, and she likes the way the school allows her to teach research in a way where she can use her strengths to help students. The supportive environment, large community of students and faculty, and the school’s extensive resources make Bronx Science home. And for many students, it would be hard to imagine a biology department without Chomet’s bustling SGI sessions packed with both students and steaming mugs of tea.

How has the biology department changed in the time you’ve been here?

Mr. Lee: “The data…looking at the data. What did I do, how did it manifest…I look at what used to be.”

Lee remarks that one of the biggest changes in “the data” has been in the AP curriculum. “The AP Bio course has changed, it used to be, ‘spit back all you know,’ content-heavy, now it’s comprehension and the skills of a scientist.”

When asked if he thought it was better or worse, he said, “It’s a different skill set, and kids are not used to writing.” This emphasis on comprehension, Lee believes, better reflects Mr. McNickle: “I think the biggest issue is the development of smartphones and social media… they really changed things.”

McNickle went on to comment about the school’s cell phone policy and the lack of ubiquity of smartphones. “Students were not even supposed to bring phones to the building. That was the explicit rule.”

It’s not just the department and the phone usage that’s changed, teachers learn and grow too. “I think it’s hard to tell how the biology department has changed because I’ve also grown up professionally in that time… The teachers have more say in the direction of the courses and matters of assessment and curriculum development.” McNickle added that Dr. Davis, the department head, is a more collaborative leader than previous heads.

Chomet: “Students are working out a lot more for themselves.”

The school’s teaching style has become much more student centered; teachers meet students where they are at and focus more on skills and applications of fundamentals instead of relying on memorization alone. How has Chomet changed? She’s grown more adaptable in her curriculum, stating, “In the past, I relied a lot more on the textbook and teaching a lot of pure facts, and now I focus much more on skills and applications of fundamentals.” The best approach to her seems to be to give students fundamental basics and let them challenge themselves in new approaches, which mirrors the way the AP Biology exam has changed to focus more on skill sets.

“Personally, it’s changed for me also because my role has changed.” Chomet has gone from a new teacher to a veteran teacher; she went from the person mimicking and learning from other more experienced teachers, to “a two way street” where she both asks for and supplies guidance.

What has been your biggest challenge as a biology teacher, or one way you have grown?

Mr. Lee: “Kids are not used to writing. I do place a premium on communicating your knowledge and assuming the role of a scientist by explaining, describing, et cetera, and students have a tough time with that…”

More and more, Lee feels writing skills are deteriorating, and it’s negatively affecting the students. He handles this as best he can, explaining, “It takes almost a whole year to see progress. Some drown, you have to have some compassion for them. And yet, you have to be tough.”

Mr. McNickle: A piece of advice Dr. Donahue (the department chair of biology until 2020) once told him, “You should be friendly with the students, but you should not be their friend.”

Over the years he has come to better understand this statement, which at first seemed a bit harsh, but he now realizes makes sense; a teacher should be approachable and make students feel comfortable, maybe joke with them or give advice, but friendship and teaching are different. Teaching is nuanced, and requires a balance of amiability and education that comes with experience.

Chomet: “For me, just the high volume of students is a big challenge, and being able to keep track of where everyone is and meet everyone’s diverse needs.”

Chomet tries to teach the content in different modalities; problem sets, case studies, videos, and texts for each skill to accommodate different learners. In her AP bio class, former students help current students–an innovation that came out of Covid lockdown but has endured because it greatly benefited students.

“My name is Richard Lee…

I’ve been in the Bronx High School of Science Biology Department since 1989.”

Lee has watched the Bronx Science biology department change and grow for 36 years, making him one of the most experienced teachers. He reflected, “I’ve had my career, I've enjoyed it.” Not only an AP Biology and Science Research teacher, he is a Bronx Science graduate. Lee was also a former teacher at John F. Kennedy High School for one year. He went to CCNY for his Bachelor’s degree, and Columbia where he received his Master’s degree in secondary science education.

Lee is characteristically seen grading work in green rather than red ink “so that the students don’t see failure.” Instead of judging students he asks himself, “How can I redirect them?” His commitment to the students and the vision of Bronx Science is the reason why he says that even after he retires he will remain a part of the Bronx Science community.

Lee also has an attachment to room 331 where he remembers when then student George Yancopoulos began his research and passion for biology. Yancopoulos is now one of the co-founders of Regeneron, a research organization that hosts the Science Talent Search, a prestigious contest that many of Mr. Lee’s students apply to. 70 of his students have been semifinalists, seven were finalists and two were top 10 winners as of 2009, when Mr. Lee received the Sloan Award for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics.

“Do what you love, and love what you do.” - Mr. Lee, 2024

“Daniel McNickel…

Teacher. Biology department since 2009.”

McNickle has taught for 16 years, or as he put it, “a whole teenager?!” He teaches AP Biology and AP Psychology. A big change from Bronx Science, Mr. McNickle taught at a private school in Houston, Texas for two years before joining the Bronx Science biology department. He’s an alum of Rice University.

McNickle began his career by, “Imitating my models, imitating the teachers who had taught me.” He reminisced about his history teacher during the controversial 2000 Bush Vs. Gore election who managed never to reveal any biases. He said, “I really thought that was admirable of her… She took a step back and said ‘I am here to show you what is true,’ but to let you figure out how you want to feel about that.” McNickle tries to carry the nurturing and innovative teaching philosophy he experienced as a student at Hunter into his teaching style here at Bronx Science.

McNickle’s teaching style is also highly affected by his students. He reflected, “I get a great mood from my students. I have had many many times in my career the experience of having a horrendous morning… but when I get into the classroom it all goes away.” When asked about his students he continued to talk for a few minutes about how, “[The students] give me tremendous curiosity about how the world works. I love being around curious people. So… from my students I get energy and motivation to remain curious about the world. They push me to look for new connections.”

Ultimately, McNickle’s teaching style is at times unconventional or different from the latest teaching trends. He himself notes, “I am very conservative, I have discovered, in my attitude towards teaching. I try to make my lessons as student centered as possible, but not necessarily in the way they are fashionable or in vogue.”

When asked how often he interacts with teachers both in and out of the biology

department, he said, “A. I am a social butterfly, B. I am the elected leader of our teacher’s chapter union. So… On a daily basis.”

But at the end of the day, what makes his class different from other biology classes? Well…

“Me!”

“The students and the pensions… that's why I'm here.” – Mr. McNickle, 2024

“My name is Max Chomet…

…I am a biology teacher at Bronx Science.”

Chomet has taught here for 9 years since she joined us in 2016. She teaches AP Biology, Science Research 9, Biology Research 11 and Biology Research 12. She’s a graduate of Bronx Science, and was a student at the same time as Mr. Lee was teaching (though she wasn’t in his class). Chomet worked at the Special Music School for one year. For undergrad, she went to Swarthmore College, where she was in a mariachi band and received a BA (Bachelor of Arts) in Biology with a minor in Chinese language. She earned an MS (Master of Science) in immunology and microbial pathogenesis at Weill Cornell Medical College. Finally, she has an MAT (Master of Arts in teaching) from Relay Graduate School of Education.

With so much happening in students’ lives, Chomet needs to be supportive especially when something is going wrong. “One of my strengths is also one of my greatest weaknesses; that I care a lot about my students and I think a lot about them, so that can be both an advantage and a disadvantage.” It’s hard to walk the line of balancing compassion and not worrying about the well-being of her students in a way that takes time from teaching, but Chomet has a high level of empathy for her students no matter what.

Chomet teaches all grades, and really enjoys working with 9th graders because she gets to teach the fundamental life skills, so she can see a large amount of growth in a short time. She also likes working with a 100% sophomore AP Bio class because they haven’t had biology since middle school, so there’s a very diverse background of knowledge and everyone has equal footing. The juniors and seniors are her research students, and since she’s usually worked with them for 2-4 years of high school, she can see their full journey over the years.

For Chomet, what makes Bronx Science different from other schools? It’s a combination of 2 things. Firstly, “Our biology department is very large, but we are very collaborative and supportive of each other.” That means there’s a huge amount of resource sharing and advice giving and receiving, and while all teachers are different, they all get along. There’s a lot of camaraderie between the staff, and an amazing work environment.

“When you combine that with the level of expertise that we have, then it gets really exciting.” Many Bronx Science teachers know about very specific specialties in their fields and are excited to use them to teach well. Chomet supplied examples like Dr Gensert’s neuroscience class, conversations with Dr LaGrassa about cellular biology, and how to explain those topics to her students using expert input. Bronx Science has a lot of people who know a lot and want to collaborate to create great lessons for students.

And, lastly…If you could send one message to every student at Bronx science what would it be?

Mr. Lee: “You have this wonderful opportunity to enjoy all the offerings of this school. Dive in!”

Mr. McNickle: “We love you.”

Chomet: “Many students are told that it’s okay to not know what they want to do in the future. But it’s also okay to know what you want to do and be wrong. There are many ways you can be happy and successful.”