Citing his work in teaching and guiding Northwest College students and his extensive efforts on the NWC campus, the Wyoming Department of Education named Allan Childs of Powell a STEM Educator of the Year.

Childs, a professor of chemistry and mathematics at Northwest, was awarded the honor for the postsecondary category during the Roadmap to Science Technology Engineering and Math Conference, held in Laramie.

Childs, who began his career at Ripon College in Ripon, Wis., started teaching at Northwest in 1985.

“There was a job here, there were mountains here,” he said. “We (Childs and his wife, Cindy) saw a faculty and administration that really valued the student — the student was No. 1.”

That focus on the student echoed his own priorities, and Childs’ student-centric philosophy continues to guide his work at NWC.

“I’m available,” he said. “I work hard. I expect my student to work hard. I’m fair. ... I have an open-door policy.

“If I’m in, my door is open and a student is welcome to come in, ask a question, raise a concern or whatever. If they send an email, I respond,” Childs said. “I guess I hope they think that I place them as highly important in the scheme of things.”

Working with students is what he enjoys most, he said. But that’s not the career he expected when he first was drawn to chemistry.

In high school, “I liked chemistry and stayed with it,” he said. “Like many kids my age, we all had our chemistry kit, and we all set the kitchen table on fire, and we kept coming back for more.

“After I got my bachelor’s degree, I decided to go to graduate school. I didn’t really want to teach, but I had to teach as a grad student.”

His reaction at the time, he said, was, “OK, grit your teeth, you have to teach.”

Childs was in for a surprise once he stepped into the classroom full-time.

“I liked it,” he said. “Students expressed an appreciation for what I was doing; they liked what I was doing, and I stayed with it.”

Decades later, students still like what he’s doing.

“Dr. Childs is an excellent teacher,” said Olivia Rodgers, who now is a physiology student at the University of Wyoming. “I really believe that his work and research at Northwest provides a lot of really great opportunities for students.”

Rodgers said she took organic chemistry for a full year, and she participated in biomedical research for two years, looking for antibiotic activity in rotting logs.

“Through Dr. Childs’ help, I was able to get a large scholarship (at UW) to continue that research,” she said.

Bryan Neeves, now a veterinarian in Dr. Lyle Bischoff’s vet clinic in Powell, said he was impressed by Childs’ honesty.

“I remember going to visit with him the very first time. I was doing pre-vet work, taking chemistry from one of the other teachers, and I wasn’t doing very well,” Neeves said. “I went to visit with him about getting out of chemistry, and he said, ‘Are you sure you want to be a veterinarian?’

“I said, ‘I think so.’ I was pretty sure,” he recalled. “We ended up getting me out of the chemistry by the other professor and getting into his class the next semester.

“It was a totally different experience,” Neeves said. “It was just a night-and-day difference in his teaching style and in his desire to get all the students to succeed.

“I owe a lot of where I am today to him and his desire to help us out when we needed a little push and a little shove. He made a huge difference in the outcome of my career.”

Kari Price, now a pharmacist at Powell Drug, said Childs went out of his way for her.

“When I first started at Northwest College, I had an adviser for the first year. She quit, and I never got another one assigned to me. He took over the role, voluntarily, and helped me decide what electives to take. I never felt uncomfortable going for help. I just enjoyed his classes.

“He’s really good about explaining, and if somebody didn’t get it, he would try to explain it in a different way. ... He was always willing to help and to make sure the students understood.

“He certainly deserves this award, in my opinion.”

Childs’ department offered a summary of his career at NWC.

“In addition to teaching, Childs is greatly involved on campus. He serves as the chemistry safety officer, is the budget coordinator and member of the Northwest College Environmental Education Committee and works with the criminal justice program and Cody Labs to develop curriculum.

“In addition to serving as an academic adviser for students, Childs also guides and assists students with independent research projects, many of whom have participated in the University of Wyoming Undergraduate Research Day. He is also the director of the Northwest College Idea Network for Biomedical Research Excellence program.”

Catelyn Deromedi, who teaches at Thermopolis Middle School, was named STEM Educator of the Year in the elementary category, and Gary Duquette received the honor in the secondary category.

A video interview of Allan Childs by the Wyoming Department of Education, filmed in recognition of Childs being named STEM Educator of the Year, can be viewed at www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvSv30l9KEU.