Science Research Program Teacher
Lori A. Pyzocha is Huntington High School’s science research program teacher. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology at St. Michael’s College in Vermont in 1998 and obtained a Master of Science in biology at Adelphi University 2000. She also studied wildlife and ecology at the School for International Training in Africa and holds graduate teacher’s certification from Long Island University – C.W. Post College.
Ms. Pyzocha has worked in Huntington as a science teacher since December 2005. She completed her student teaching requirements in the Half Hollow Hills school district. In addition to the science research program, she also teaches courses known as Living Environment- Honor’s and Introduction to the Living Environment.
Prior to coming to Huntington, Ms. Pyzocha worked at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory as a lab technician in the department of neurobiology from 1998 to 2005. In this position she conducted collaborative and independent behavioral and molecular genetic experiments, identifying and characterizing genes involved in learning and memory; maintained the inventory of lab reagents and materials, gained highly developed behavioral genetic and molecular skills such as genomic prep, PCR, digests, primer development, brain histology, lax Z and other staining techniques; trained visiting scientists to perform behavioral analysis and performed website development.
In late 2001, Ms. Pyzocha represented the Cold Spring Harbor Lab as a teacher at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, lecturing on background material and various techniques, directing the set-up and training of lab technicians on a large-scale forward mutagenesis project and ordering and arranging the shipment of all supplies.
Ms. Pyzocha has also worked as a research assistant at St. Michael’s College, in the Adelphi University animal care facility and as a field biology teaching assistant in Colchester, Vermont. As a student in a study abroad program in Tanzania, she developed a project that involved researching giraffes in Arusha National Park. By photo identification and extensive study of behavioral patterns, records were developed for means of protecting endangered animals.
In addition to being proficient in numerous computer software programs, Ms. Pyyzocha has a working knowledge of Swahili, sign-language and Spanish. She has also contributed to several published scientific papers.