About Me:
Welcome to my webpage!
I am a 7th year science & mathematics teacher at Wilmington High School, and I'm in the process of finishing my doctoral degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I am a Wilmington High School graduate myself (1997-2001), and I'm proud to have lived the majority of my life as a member of this community.
Along with my anticipated doctoral degree from UIUC, I have two bachelors degrees and a masters degree. I earned my first bachelors degree from McKendree University (2001-2006), where I majored in Chemistry/Biochemistry and was a four-year starter on my college football team. I earned college football All-American honors and All-Conference Academic honors by my junior season, and I was named a team captain my senior season. My second bachelors degree was from Governors State University (2006-2007), where I studied secondary chemistry/physics/mathematics education. Immediately following the completion of my second bachelors degree, I was hired by Wilmington High School to teach physics and mathematics (2007). In 2009, I decided to begin working on my masters degree at Olivet Nazarene University (2009-2011) while simultaneously teaching science and mathematics at WHS. I proudly graduated with a 4.0 GPA from my masters program, and during that same time frame I was honored to be featured on WGN-TV as the "Teacher of the Month" (December, 2009). In 2012, I was accepted into the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign graduate school--one of the world's top graduate colleges--to earn a doctorate degree in Math, Science, & Technology Education (MSTE). I spent the 2012-2013 academic year researching within the UIUC physics and education departments, completing my required doctoral coursework, and contributing to a wide variety of science education outreach programs through the University. In the spring of 2013, with almost all of my doctoral coursework and obligations completed, things came full-circle when I re-applied at Wilmington High School for a science teaching position. At this stage of my professional career, and in the twilight of my own academic pursuits, words can't begin to describe a) how proud I am to be back in our community as a teacher, and b) how honored I am to have the opportunity to teach the students of our school district.
Aside from academia, I'm an avid sports fan, a weightlifting enthusiast, a (bad) golfer, a "semi-skilled" guitar player and songwriter (if you're lucky, maybe I'll perform a song or two for the class!), a dreadfully awful singer (someone with a good voice might need to sing if I perform a song!!), an animal lover, an outspoken science education advocate, and a self-proclaimed science geek. In my free time, I enjoy hanging out with my friends, going to Chicago, reading current science journals and articles, working out, devising and performing science experiments, and working on my doctoral dissertation.
I am a 7th year science & mathematics teacher at Wilmington High School, and I'm in the process of finishing my doctoral degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I am a Wilmington High School graduate myself (1997-2001), and I'm proud to have lived the majority of my life as a member of this community.
Along with my anticipated doctoral degree from UIUC, I have two bachelors degrees and a masters degree. I earned my first bachelors degree from McKendree University (2001-2006), where I majored in Chemistry/Biochemistry and was a four-year starter on my college football team. I earned college football All-American honors and All-Conference Academic honors by my junior season, and I was named a team captain my senior season. My second bachelors degree was from Governors State University (2006-2007), where I studied secondary chemistry/physics/mathematics education. Immediately following the completion of my second bachelors degree, I was hired by Wilmington High School to teach physics and mathematics (2007). In 2009, I decided to begin working on my masters degree at Olivet Nazarene University (2009-2011) while simultaneously teaching science and mathematics at WHS. I proudly graduated with a 4.0 GPA from my masters program, and during that same time frame I was honored to be featured on WGN-TV as the "Teacher of the Month" (December, 2009). In 2012, I was accepted into the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign graduate school--one of the world's top graduate colleges--to earn a doctorate degree in Math, Science, & Technology Education (MSTE). I spent the 2012-2013 academic year researching within the UIUC physics and education departments, completing my required doctoral coursework, and contributing to a wide variety of science education outreach programs through the University. In the spring of 2013, with almost all of my doctoral coursework and obligations completed, things came full-circle when I re-applied at Wilmington High School for a science teaching position. At this stage of my professional career, and in the twilight of my own academic pursuits, words can't begin to describe a) how proud I am to be back in our community as a teacher, and b) how honored I am to have the opportunity to teach the students of our school district.
Aside from academia, I'm an avid sports fan, a weightlifting enthusiast, a (bad) golfer, a "semi-skilled" guitar player and songwriter (if you're lucky, maybe I'll perform a song or two for the class!), a dreadfully awful singer (someone with a good voice might need to sing if I perform a song!!), an animal lover, an outspoken science education advocate, and a self-proclaimed science geek. In my free time, I enjoy hanging out with my friends, going to Chicago, reading current science journals and articles, working out, devising and performing science experiments, and working on my doctoral dissertation.
Contact Information
E-mail: ccunnings@wilmington.will.k12.il.us
Secondary E-mail: cunning7@illinois.edu
School telephone: (815) 926-1752
Twitter: @WHSCunnings
Secondary E-mail: cunning7@illinois.edu
School telephone: (815) 926-1752
Twitter: @WHSCunnings