Richard Tchen

The Math Forum @ Drexel University
3210 Cherry Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-2713
tel: (215) 895-1787 or (800) 756-7823
e-mail
1841 Webster Street
Philadelphia, PA 19146-1831

EDUCATION

Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA. BA in Mathematics, Concentration in Environmental Studies, June 1996. Pennsylvania Teacher Certification in secondary level mathematics, December 1996.

Princeton University, Mpala Research Centre, Kenya. Co-designed and conducted field experiments to investigate ant-acacia tree ecology. Identified major fauna of Kenya for tropical ecology course group project. (Dec 1995-Jan 1996)

St. Paul's School, Concord, NH. Magna Cum Laude, June 1991. Distinctions in Mathematics, History, Modern Languages, Religion. Elected to Cum Laude Society. National Hispanic Merit Program Semifinalist. Valpey Prizes every year for outstanding overall academic achievement.

Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA. Selected from applicants state-wide for PA Governor's School for the Agricultural Sciences. Completed final project on residential biological waste water treatment. (June-Aug 1989)

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION EXPERIENCE

Project Manager, the Math Forum, Philadelphia, PA. Manage web site. Administer dozens of discussion groups. Mentor students who submit solutions and explanations to Problems of the Week. Edit electronic newsletter e-mailed to thousands of subscribers every week, as well as many other documents for public consumption. Provide professional development opportunities for teachers. (Feb 1997-present)

Editorial Assistant, Philadelphia, PA. Provided feedback on essays contributed to The Earth Charter in Action: Toward a Sustainable World (KIT Publishers, 2006). (Sep 2004-Aug 2005)

Symposium Assistant Coordinator, Philadelphia, PA and Chewonki, ME. Supported planning and execution of "An Academic Symposium: Teaching for the Environment in Higher Education - The Promise of the Earth Charter." Organized 100 participants and four keynote speakers by e-mail. Assembled and edited symposium brochure and program. (Sept 2000-Sept 2002)

Co-editor, Swarthmore, PA. proceedings of the Sanibel Symposium: Academic Planning in College and University Environmental Programs (download the PDF). (May-Oct 1998)

Editorial and Research Assistant, Swarthmore, PA, and Freeport, ME. Researched 121 professors' survey responses for Environmental Education: Academia's Response 1972-1997, a North American Association for Environmental Education monograph. Analyzed enrollment data and interpreted prose responses. (Oct 1996-Jan 1997)

Student Teacher, Radnor Middle School, Wayne, PA. Supported 36 seventh and 31 eighth graders across five mathematics classes. Implemented original daily and three-week lesson plans, teaching (1) geometry and algebra, from Watershed Program stream testing, and (2) data analysis, from student-generated survey of 1996 Presidential elections. Facilitated learning through groupwork and activity stations; problem-solving through student inquiries and manipulatives; and writing through peer review. (Sept-Dec 1996)

Curriculum Writer, Swarthmore, PA, and Pemaquid, ME. Co-developed K-8 curriculum and poster concepts for National Wildlife Week 1997, the National Wildlife Federation's annual curriculum, distributed to over 600,000 classrooms nationwide. Co-wrote ten environmental education activities and organizing educator's guide, Nature's Web: Communities and Conservation. (June-Aug 1996)

Environmental Educator, Wallingford Elementary School, Wallingford, PA. Co-taught fifth graders once a week. Facilitated "sense of place" awareness through discussions, story-tellings, and hands-on activities. Planned school garden funded by Orion Society. (Feb-May 1996)

Environmental Educator, USDA Forest Service, Radnor, PA. Team-taught original lessons on ecology and natural resources. Reached over 1300 racially diverse K-12 youth at over 20 northeastern US sites. Spearheaded urban Philadelphia community clean-up projects. Delivered original concluding speech to Forest Service Chief and Staff in Washington, DC. Co-wrote and edited Branching Out to the Youth of America. (June-Aug 1994)

SPECIAL SKILLS AND ACTIVITIES

Skilled in UNIX and HTML environments, and Macintosh and IBM word processing, spreadsheet, and mathematics applications • fluent in French and Portuguese • Project Learning Tree educator • classical and steel-string guitarist • hatha yoga practitioner • African (Umfundalai) dancer • certified in First Aid and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) by the American Red Cross • holder of the National Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)

References