More Than Professional Development: Nick Czelusniak Brings PWSC Learning Back to His Classroom

For Nick Czelusniak, professional development has not always been easy to find — especially when it comes to science.

As a third-grade teacher in Unalakleet, Alaska, Czelusniak teaches every subject. He said he has felt that science has received less attention in the professional development available to him, despite his interest in the subject.

That is one of the reasons he signed up for Prince William Sound College’s For Teachers courses this summer.

“I feel like I’ve had the least amount of professional development science-wise, and I really love it,” Czelusniak said.

This summer, Czelusniak took Coastal Ecology in Cordova in May and Far North Agriculture in Fairbanks in August. For him, the value of the courses went well beyond adding new information to his teaching toolbox. They gave him opportunities to become more knowledgeable in subjects he cares about, practice new teaching approaches and develop lessons he could take directly back to his students.

“I definitely felt like I left the courses a better teacher,” he said.

That professional growth was intentional. Czelusniak wanted to become more of a content expert while also developing new ways to make science exciting and engaging for his students.

The courses gave him both.

Rather than simply being shown resources or listening to presentations about possible classroom activities, Czelusniak and the other teachers participated in the activities themselves. They collected and examined aquatic invertebrates, practiced nature journaling, explored agriculture and hydroponics, and worked through lessons they could adapt for different grade levels.

For Czelusniak, experiencing those activities as a student was an important part of the learning.

“Professional development, they show you where the resources are, and kind of give you a brief overview, and then they’re just there,” he said. “But we got to apply a lot and use, like, do the hands-on activities ourselves.”

That hands-on approach gave him something he could take back to his own classroom — not just resources, but an understanding of how the activities work, how students might respond to them and how they could be adapted to meet his students’ needs.

Czelusniak also emphasized the people who made the courses such a positive experience. He described Katie Bobowski, Bjorn Wolter, and his peer mentors, Cat Walker and KT Latico, as an important part of the experience.

“The people that run it are absolutely amazing,” he said, adding that the instructors were knowledgeable, enthusiastic and willing to help teachers develop ideas they could actually use in their classrooms.

He especially appreciated having peer mentors available throughout the courses — people he could turn to, bounce ideas off of and work with to develop lessons that would be useful once he returned to his classroom.

He also valued learning alongside teachers from across Alaska.

“You’re getting a lot of cool perspectives and ideas and resources from other teachers,” he said. “I think the course really fosters a sense of camaraderie.”

And he has already started putting that professional development into practice.

After taking Coastal Ecology, Czelusniak used what he learned during summer school, bringing aquatic invertebrate activities to his students. He plans to expand his salmon egg incubation project, introduce beach sampling, and use lessons about environmental traits to help students understand how organisms are shaped by their surroundings.

The Far North Agriculture course has also given him ideas he plans to use, including hydroponics and lessons connected to locally important foods such as blueberries.

For Czelusniak, the connection between the courses and his classroom is exactly what makes the professional development meaningful.

He isn't simply returning to school with a folder of materials. He is returning with new knowledge, new teaching strategies, and more confidence in the subjects he teaches.

“We expect our students to develop themselves and to become better as we’re teaching them,” Czelusniak said. “But we have to be good role models for that by taking these kinds of opportunities.”

That may be the most important lesson Czelusniak is taking home from his summer of professional development: teachers need to keep learning, too.