mkapeckas@innovationcharter.org
After graduating from Tufts University with a degree in Biology and Spanish, Melissa has worked in education since 1997 in a variety of roles in the middle school setting, including as a principal, teacher, coach, and curriculum coordinator. Melissa returned to Tufts University to earn her Master’s Degree in Teaching Science, and earned her administrator’s license with the Massachusetts Elementary School Principals’ Association. She enjoys traveling to experience other cultures, visit other ecosystems, and practice language skills. She has had the pleasure of traveling with students and teachers on several occasions, including two trips to Costa Rica with families from IACS. In 2003, she was selected to participate in the JASON XV expedition at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. She worked with students and leading researchers on a scientific expedition broadcast live via satellite and distance-learning technologies to millions of students around the world. In 2009, she was selected as an Earthwatch fellow to participate in a sustainable agriculture research project that worked with coffee cooperatives in Costa Rica. In 2013, she participated in an administrator exchange to Handan, China through the China Exchange Initiative.. IACS enjoyed hosting her counterpart, Mr. Hai Wang, in the fall of 2013. Melissa is a passionate life-long learner, and encourages the same in her students.