Brian DuBay

When one asks Mr. DuBay where his passion lies, the answer is simple—he loves learning. To say he is a life-long learner would be an understatement. Since childhood he has had an inquisitive nature, spending countless summers combing the neighborhood woods looking for dinosaur bones, collecting rocks or staring at the night sky identifying constellations. There was always something he found intriguing about the sciences and he could never read enough to satisfy his desires.

Wayne State University, in Detroit Michigan provided his foundation for a Bachelor of Science. Teaching high school students to embrace, appreciate and love science seemed a logical utilization of his talents. In 2004, with a double major in social studies and group sciences with a concentration in geology and astronomy, he was hired by the Warren Consolidated School District, the tenth largest in the Michigan school system, and began his career teaching geology at Cousino High School.

With the advent of new state science graduation requirements, he was approached to develop and teach a new astronomy course focused on juniors and seniors. Since this was a new district program, materials were limited and he was afforded the opportunity to author both the curriculum and textbook for the new course. Subsequently the district adopted his work and the astronomy curriculum is currently being utilized at all three of the district's high schools.

One of his core philosophical beliefs is that one learns the most when engaged and immersed in hands on learning. He not only reinforces this principle in his classroom, he also feels it is important to continue to learn as much as possible because ultimately, the more he learns, the more he can teach his students. In 2005 he received a Fulbright Scholarship, through Michigan State University, to conduct ethnographic research in the jungles of Belize with a concentration in Ancient Mayan astronomy. While living for the summer in villages and hiking through the Belize jungle, he gained insights into himself as well as the Mayan culture and civilization, which he was able to share with his students. Furthering his love of learning, in 2007 he returned to Wayne State University to pursue a Master's in geology with a specialization in soils. Children's Hospital of Detroit was receiving an alarming amount of high lead concentration cases and he and his professor (Dr. Jeffery Howard) engaged in extensive research to determine if there was a correlation between illnesses and pollution in Detroit's soil.

When he is not teaching or doing research he enjoys: traveling with his wife, who is also a teacher at Cousino High School, playing the drums, video games, any outdoor activity, and home improvement projects for family and friends. It is with great anticipation that he looks forward to expanding his personal and student horizons through PolarTREC. Mr. DuBay believes that the research experiences he will have in Antarctica will play a pivotal role in his life academically, socially, and personally.