a doctorate in knowledge,
a heart for teaching

By Linh Tran 

From elementary to now, Renevie Magboo has always loved STEM. Her love, which then turned into passion, and now leading her to become a teacher with a doctorate degree. 

Renevie Magboo is the engineering and physics teacher here at YB. Her love for STEM dates back to her childhood starting in elementary. Magboo loved the fun hands-on activities and the calculations she had to do.

Since she was young, Magboo has always had a passion and interest in STEM because of the joy she finds in discovering new things and solving math problems. When she became a physics & engineering teacher, she would see students that enjoy and love math and science just like she did. This made her more motivated seeing students have the same passion she did when she was young. 

Magboo: “I grew up liking math and then I ended up being a physics teacher and seeing students who also have interest and love for Math and Science that's what keeps me motivated and inspired to become a STEM teacher.”

Getting to such a big step wasn't so easy. In college, Magboo had faced many big obstacles from covid to a family emergency. This all happened during the time she was writing her dissertation which was just even more stress on her.

 But, instead of giving up she used these obstacles to push herself even more not to give up.

Magboo: “I remember that was before covid when I was finishing my dissertation and there was also a big medical problem that happened in one of my family members during that time that I was writing my dissertation, but it did not stop me but what happened was i was more motivated and inspired to to finish my PhD” 

Being a teacher is something Magboo never regrets, but it also wasn’t her first option. Her dream was to become an engineer, but due to her family not having the resources, she decided to become a teacher and hasn’t looked back since.

Magboo: “my 1st choice was I wanted to become an engineer. But, because I’m from the Philippines during my time back in the 1990’s. Engineering was one of the more expensive careers. Back home my family did not have the resources to send me to an engineering school.”

Beside just being a teacher, Magboo is the MESA advisor, meaning, she supports, guides, and inspires the students to explore their interests and academics beyond the classroom.

Magboo: “MESA also provides students the venue to do hands-on activities, to collaborate, to compete, to make projects, and also to practice their leadership skills.”

Magboo had worked hard to get to where she is today by overcoming challenges, pushing herself, and staying determined to achieve her goals through dedication, perseverance, and strong belief in herself. Her message to STEM lovers is just to go for it!

Magboo: “GO FOR IT! STEM has many opportunities that will be available because technology is always changing and learning doesn't stop”