Diane Machen
Science Teacher
“Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” – B.B. King
” I grew up on a large farm in Lawson, Missouri, a very small, Midwest, farming community. I wanted to be a teacher from an early age after being inspired by several of my teachers. Science and music were my favorite subjects in school, but in high school, I felt a music career would not be very lucrative for me, so I decided to pursue a degree in science.
After graduating as valedictorian of my high school class, I attended Northeast Missouri State University, which is now Truman State University. During my freshman year of college, I was introduced to the field of forensic science and was hooked by the application of science to solve crimes! I transferred to the University of California, Berkeley and graduated summa cum laude earning a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry while working as a forensic science intern for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) on Treasure Island, California. After graduating from college, I became a forensic scientist for the Oakland Police Department and later moved to Reno, Nevada working as a forensic scientist for the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. During my forensic science career, I taught different courses for varied audiences, including police officers and judges. I routinely testified in court educating jurors on how I used science to help solve crimes and answer questions of the law.
After working for several years as a forensic scientist, I decided to return to college and pursue one of my original passions – becoming a teacher. I earned a Master of Arts in Teaching degree in elementary and secondary education from Sierra Nevada College. I hold a Nevada teaching license to teach kindergarten through twelfth grade with several endorsements including middle school science, middle school math, and English language acquisition and development. My secondary education specialty is biological sciences.
After earning my teaching degree and license, I retired from my very rewarding forensic science career and began my teaching career working at RiSE, Washoe County’s adult education program, and St. Albert the Great Catholic School. I taught math and science at RiSE and intervention, religion, and math at St. Albert. I then worked as the computer science teacher at Lois Allen Elementary.
I currently teach upper elementary and middle school science at Triad School. I also serve as the Level 4 homeroom teacher. I strive to bring varied opportunities for students to see the connection of science to everyday life. Connecting science to other disciplines, including math, reading, writing, and social studies, also is an integral part of science learning, so I routinely incorporate learning opportunities that demonstrate the interconnection of the different subjects. I hope to inspire my students as my teachers inspired me.”