Mr. DeLuca is an enthusiastic and innovative science educator with experience working in middle and high schools throughout the United States and The Netherlands.  He loves being a teacher and is very excited to join The British International School of New York.  He studied biology and teacher education at Eastern Illinois University where he was also a member and captain of the swim team.  Eight years ago he began his career in Teach for America teaching middle school science in Baltimore, Maryland.  During his time in Teach for America he was surrounded by many excellent teachers which helped motivate him to develop into the best teacher possible.

From Baltimore he moved back to the suburbs of Chicago and worked as a high school biology teacher.  It was there that he became interested in how reading and literacy impacts student learning in science and he earned a Masters of Education in Reading and Literacy from Benedictine University.  While he was there, he developed a college-preparatory biology curriculum that emphasized reading, note-taking, and study strategies for students that were below grade level in their reading skills.  He was also able to pursue one of his passions, swimming, as a Lead Coach for Maverick Swim Club while he lived in Chicago.  He coached a wide range of children from beginning swimmers to state champions.

He spent a brief amount of time in St. Paul, Minnesota as a high school biology teacher, middle school science teacher, and head swim coach before his wife was offered a transfer to Amsterdam, The Netherlands.   For the past three years he has been a science teacher and MYP Coordinator at the International School of Almere in The Netherlands.  In this role he has developed the school’s science curriculum and helped guide the school through the MYP authorization process.  He has also been taking courses to earn a Masters in Science in Science Education which he will complete in June.

Outside of teaching, Mr. DeLuca likes to stay active by running, hiking, travelling, reading, and biking.  He has completed (slowly) two marathons and is thinking about signing up for another one this autumn. Over the past three years he has traveled extensively throughout Europe with his wife, and he is looking forward to discovering all that New York has to offer as well as the Northeast United States.  Finally, Mr. DeLuca loves to read and can get wrapped up in long discussions about Harry Potter.

He is very excited to get started at BIS-NY and looks forward to meeting everyone soon.

Qualifications

B.S., Biology with Teacher Certification -Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, IL
M.Ed. in Reading and Literacy – Benedictine University, Lisle, IL
M.S. in Science Education – Montana State University, Bozeman, MT