Scott Coonfare has been named Science Teacher of the Year in Alabama, he won the award back in August. This is his second year at Sparkman and he teaches 10th grade environmental science.

Founded in 1938, the National Association of Geology Teachers (NAGT) supports a diverse, inclusive, and thriving community of educators that works on improving high-quality earth education and promoting future geoscience educators. Coonfare was nominated for the Earth Science Teacher of the Year Award for the state of Alabama.

“I was shocked, I found out about it this summer and I still don’t know how I got it. I just do what I do and I don’t try to publicize, I don’t want to, as I tell the kids, it’s not about me, no one cares about me. this is about them doing things that they would never think about doing in school, I feel awkward about it because it’s shining something on me, but it should be on the kids,” Coonfare said.

He was originally from Tampa, Florida, when he finished college, he didn’t want to start teaching immediately, so instead he went into the restaurant business.

“I was a chef then a general manager, basically anything. Then my wife and I opened up our own restaurant in Tampa and our kids didn’t really like being dishwashers and all that. So we sold it and started teaching. My wife is over teaching at Legacy Elementary and I’m here and really love it,” Coonfare said.

Coonfare says he and his wife chose to move to Huntsville because their daughter got a scholarship in cyber security at UAH and ever since then they’ve always loved Huntsville.

“Ever since she was in third grade every year she went to aviation camp at the Space and Rocket Center and we would stay in Huntsville for a week. And we loved Huntsville. and we love it here now,” Coonfare said.