Dr. Kalaiselvi Panneerselvam: I have a medical degree from India (M.D) and a Master’s degree (M.S) in Biology from Florida International University, Miami, Florida. As a Doctor I was not only involved in practicing medicine but also in teaching people of all ages about hygiene, general health, good eating habits etc. And as a graduate student, I was involved in teaching Anatomy, Human Biology, Immunology and Histology labs for three years at FIU. After my graduation, I worked for three years at University of Miami as a Researcher at Neuropathology department, doing primarily tissue culture and training people in various culture techniques and biochemical assays.

I joined the Archimedean Academy in 2006, as a science teacher with a unique opportunity of teaching Science for my son at his school. Given the Research background and Teaching Experience at University level, I promised the school President Dr. Kafkoulis that I would be working for only a year. He just smiled, nodded and accepted me. Now I know the reason behind his smile (it has been four years now and I am still teaching at Archimedean). I feel I could have not made a better decision. I feel a sense of contentment teaching science to younger kids. I am also proud that during my teaching our school has topped the FCAT Science exams in Grade 5 and Grade 8 in Miami-Dade County. Besides FCAT preparation, teaching science at different grade levels in middle school I also teach the Labs for our AP Biology program.

Given the right push, proper conditions and guidance I believe that young people have the great potential to become anything they want. My teachers believed in me many years ago in India and showed me the path to success: good work habit and a steady recognizable routine. I want to encourage the students at Archimedean the same way my teachers did so someday they all will be successful in life as I am today.

I also believe that competition sparks the student interest and improves their education and achievement. It is only through competitions we can identify young people who have both the interest and aptitude in a particular subject area. Because of the above-mentioned reasons and much more I am involved in the Science Olympiad, Science Bowl, Spelling Bee, Geography Bee, The Science Fair and History bee competitions respectively. Under my guidance our Archimedean science teams has represented the State of Florida at the Nationals in Denver, Colorado for Science Bowl and University of Illinois, Urbana for science Olympiad competitions.