Dr. Ron Occhiogrosso

Science Inside and Out for Students at Notre Dame Academy

By Suzanne Till
Special to the HERALD
(From the Issue of 3/1/07)

It’s noon on a Tuesday at Notre Dame Academy (NDA) in Middleburg and instead of gathering around a table in the cafeteria, members of the Science Club are crowded around a lab table in the classroom of Dr. Ron Occhiogrosso.
“Dr. O,” as he is known around campus, observes the scene with a mixture of pride and amusement.
“They’re so excited right now,” he says as groups of two or three tinker with various pieces of apparatus. What they’re excited about is the upcoming Virginia Science Olympiad, a statewide competition to be held in April. Notre Dame Academy will be the only Catholic school represented in the tournament, which has the goal of changing the way science is perceived and taught through an emphasis on problem solving with a hands-on, minds-on approach. This is precisely Dr. O’s approach to bringing science to his students: bringing science to life by demonstrating concepts both in and outside of the classroom and encouraging students to pursue individual scientific interests. And the appeal of the teaching profession? “I like being able to engage students in real-world scientific principles and educating them about it impacts them,” says Dr. O of his life’s work.
His efforts have paid big dividends since he began teaching earth science and chemistry at NDA last year. As faculty adviser to the Science Club, its membership has grown from just a handful of students to nearly 20. In 2006, students entered the Virginia Science Olympiad for the first time in the school’s history, taking second place in one of the 23 events included in the competition.
“Hopes are high for this year’s competition,” says Science Club President Matt Rudy, a senior who this past summer participated in the Science and Engineering Apprentice program sponsored by George Washington University and the Department of Defense. His program project, “The Impact of Suspended Dust on the Martian Surface Radiation Environment,” was inspired by what he had learned in Dr. O’s classes, and he is thankful for the encouragement from Dr. O.
“I never would have had that experience if it hadn’t been for him” says Rudy of his teacher.
Dr. O was also the “go to guy” for John Malycke, another senior and Science Club member, who will be taking his model rocket nose cone project to the Science Olympiad. As the project involves testing the various properties of polymer plastics to determine what provides the best material for rocket nose cones, Dr. O’s background in chemical engineering (he holds a doctorate in it from Johns Hopkins University) proved an invaluable resource.
“He really helped point my work in the right direction, as he does with all of us,” says Malycke, who will be headed to the Air Force Academy next year to study engineering.
Originally from New York, Occhiogrosso has been a full-time educator since 1989, having taught middle school through college level science in both public and private institutions.
“I wanted to (dreamed of) teaching at a Catholic high school,” he says, “so that I could speak freely and openly about God, Jesus, our Blessed Mother and any Catholic doctrine I saw fit.”
Finally, the opportunity to realize that dream came from Notre Dame Academy. Without hesitation, Dr. O relocated his family (wife Fran and six children) to Front Royal. NDA provides exactly the kind of warm, close environment that Occhiogrosso feels is healthy for both students and faculty. “I can get close enough to them to really know them and to help them when they need it.”
Dr. O’s most difficult challenge? “Keeping my students engaged,” he says. “I do not like it when they look bored, lax, not interested. It really bothers me a lot.”
It’s past 12:30 p.m. when the Science Club finishes up their session for the day and students begin arriving for earth science. Dr. O stands at the front of the classroom, blow torch in hand, helium balloon bouncing gently off the ceiling, ready to demonstrate the concept of convection. Nobody looks bored.