Six WPI Teacher Preparation Program (TPP) students, Jesse Drozd, Lucas Dion,  Grace Ho, Sarah Roberg, Samantha Simmons, and Vaansh Mansharamani,  accompanied by Director of Teacher Preparation Jillian DiBonaventura and Director for Community Partnerships & Education Access, Noemi Robertson,  attended the 2026 Northeast Noyce Conference in Philadelphia, PA, on March 26-28, 2026, joining a national community of future STEM educators dedicated to transforming K–12 education. 

Preview

Front (L-R) Noemi Robertson, Ally Morin (WPI TPP Alumni and current HS Chemistry teacher), Jay Turner (Teacher Mentor and HS Chemistry teacher), Grace Ho, Samantha Simmons. Back (L-R) Sarah Roberg,  Jillian DiBonaventura, Vaansh Mansharamani, Lucas Dion, Jesse Drozd

Front (L-R) Noemi Robertson, Ally Morin (WPI TPP Alumni and current HS Chemistry teacher), Jay Turner (Teacher Mentor and HS Chemistry teacher), Grace Ho, Samantha Simmons. Back (L-R) Sarah Roberg, Jillian DiBonaventura, Vaansh Mansharamani, Lucas Dion, Jesse Drozd

The Conference, Sharing Teacher Knowledge: Voices from the field about the future of STEM Education, brought together Noyce Scholars and educators from across the Northeast region to learn, connect, and discuss strategies for supporting new K-12 STEM teachers. 

Jesse Drozd, Lucas Dion, Grace Ho, Samantha Simmons, and Vaansh Mansharamani are part WPI’s GoATeach (Go And Teach) Noyce Scholarship Program, which recruits and prepares undergraduates in science, mathematics, and engineering to join the teaching profession at the secondary level to make a high impact on STEM education at high-need schools. 

Noemi Robertson participated in the Share-A-Thon, where she presented a poster on Developing Future K–12 STEM Teachers Through Asset-Based Community Experiences. 

The conference was a valuable opportunity to connect with other STEM educators, share teaching experiences, and engage in meaningful workshops that supported STEM teaching and learning.

People

Jillian DiBonaventura
Jillian DiBonaventura
Instructor/Director of Teacher Preparation, STEM Education Center
Jillian DiBonaventura joined the STEM Education Center at WPI as Director of Teacher Preparation in 2022. She brings a wealth of experience to the role, with a diverse background in both classroom teaching and teacher education. Jillian began her career teaching K-12 Music in Wor [...]
read more
Noemi Robertson
Noemi Robertson
Instructor/Director for Community Partnerships and Education Access, STEM Education Center
Noemi Robertson joined the STEM Education Center as the Instructor/Director of Community Partnerships & Education Access in October 2022.  Noemi is responsible for building and managing relationships in the local community to support teaching experiences for the WPI Teacher P [...]
read more