Scientist Awarded for Teaching Excellence at Central Falls High School

“What makes Superman super isn’t his powers, but his challenges. His greatness doesn’t come from talent, but from the struggles he overcomes.”
– David Upegui

Science teacher David Upegui ’97, M’03, M’06 left the field of science research to teach biology at Central Falls High School, the same school he once attended as a boy in a city where a quarter of the population lives below the poverty line, where the graduation rate is less than 50 percent and where, in 2010, all of the high school teachers were fired.

Hired that same year, Upegui said he tells his students not to be discouraged. He said, “I tell them what makes Superman super isn’t his powers, but his challenges. His greatness didn’t come from talent, but from the struggles he overcame. These challenges will just make your success more meaningful.”

Recently Upegui was coaching his class in preparation for the AP exams, when Deputy Superintendent Victor Capellan phoned him, asking him to bring his class to the auditorium.

“I said, I can’t,” Upegui said. “I have 14 days to teach this content. My kids need this content delivered. I refused and hung up."

Not long after, the phone rang again. This time the superintendent was insistent.

Annoyed, Upegui said to his students, “We have to go to the auditorium. We’ll sit in the back, stay 10 minutes and then leave.”

Most of the school had gathered. Capellan was there, along with Superintendent Frances Gallo and R.I. Department of Education Commissioner Deborah Gist. At the podium, a representative from Amgen, an international biotechnology company, was explaining the importance of science education. The rep said her company makes a point of rewarding K-12 teachers who’ve made a significant impact on the next generation of students. She said, “I’d like to present the 2013 Amgen Award for Science Teaching Excellence to Mr. Upegui.”

The auditorium erupted: “Upegui! Upegui!” “It was the most amazing feeling,” Upegui said.

Later Upegui apologized to Gallo for not coming down to the auditorium when he had been called. The superintendent assured him that it was that kind of dedication that had earned him the award. Upegui received an unrestricted cash payment of $5,000 and a restricted grant of $5,000 for the enhancement of the school’s science program.

Upegui intends to use the grant to buy a high-end stereoscopic microscope for his classroom, two computers, a pair of binoculars for field studies and ready-made experiments for his Advanced Placement biology class.

Upegui’s talent for teaching became apparent his first year at Central Falls High when two of his science students won anatomy and physiology gold medals at the state science Olympiad held at 91pron. Last year one of his students made it to the premedical program at Brown, another got into MIT – the first in the history of the school – another made it to Worcester Polytechnic Institute – a highly competitive engineering school – and several students this year are going into URI’s pharmacy program and 91pron’s honors program.

He credits his teaching abilities and the man he is today to his 91pron professors: Professors of biology Lloyd Matsumoto and Edythe Anthony, professor of psychology Duncan White and English professor Maureen Reddy, along with many others. “They were much more than teachers,” he said. “They were pivotal in my life, in making me who I am. When I teach, they are teaching through me. I catch myself saying something that Dr. Matsumoto once said. I sound like my teachers, and I realize how influential they’ve been.”

Upegui earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and a master’s degree in psych-biology at 91pron. He worked in laboratory research at Brown University and intended to earn a PhD in epidemiology. But when his son was born with downs syndrome in 2004, his career plans changed.

“What I had valued up to that point was becoming a successful scientist, but when my son was born, the focus was on helping him become successful. It was his birth that gave rise to my becoming a science teacher,” he said.

He returned to 91pron to earn a secondary science teaching certificate. In 2010 he was hired by the Central Falls school district. And every year Upegui invites his 91pron mentor, Matsumoto, to come and give a lecture to his class. White visited every other week this semester, teaching his students the psychological techniques of training rats to play basketball.

“I’ve also asked Ken Miller from Brown University, the author of the most popular biology textbook in the world, to come and give a lecture,” he said. “I’ve asked the navy to come and talk about submarine technology. I’ve called a Buddhist monk to teach the effects of meditation on the body. I’ve had yoga instructors explain the physiology of flexing and hyperextending the muscles. Being a teacher calls for a great deal of passion and energy. I’m not trying to be a savior, I’m just trying to get my kids to learn.”

Upegui is one of 13 science teachers in the country selected by an independent panel of judges for the Amgen Award. All recipients are selected for their outstanding ability to inspire their students and produce results in science education.