Thunder Ridge teacher brings national STEM experience back to Eastern Idaho

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — A Thunder Ridge High School math teacher is back in Eastern Idaho after spending nearly a year in Washington, D.C., working with the U.S. Air Force on national STEM education efforts.

Natalie Woods was selected for the 2025-26 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship, an 11-month program that places accomplished STEM teachers in federal agencies and congressional offices. Woods served with the Department of the Air Force in its Air & Space K-12 STEM Outreach office.

Woods said one of the biggest opportunities was getting access to scientists and researchers working on emerging technology and then asking how that work could be translated into something useful for students.

“The teacher in me, the whole time I’m listening to all of these researchers and talking and questioning with them, I’m thinking, how do I bring this back to the classroom?” Woods said. “How do I make it accessible for teachers and for students so they can see this really cool, cutting-edge, fantastic science?”

During the fellowship, Woods worked on STEM outreach tied to Air Force critical technology areas, helping connect scientific concepts with real-world Air Force applications. A midyear update sent to Bonneville Joint School District 93 said she also helped deliver professional development for STEM teachers, created outreach materials and expanded her expertise in artificial intelligence and data analysis.

Woods said the fellowship was also about making sure classroom teachers had a voice in broader education conversations.

“It’s a highly competitive fellowship where they bring in 15 STEM teachers from across the country and basically they place them in federal agencies where the teachers provide the voice of the classroom experience and their expertise while they’re learning from national leaders at the same time,” Woods said.

Now that the fellowship has ended, the focus is shifting back to Eastern Idaho and what District 93 can gain from Woods’ experience.

Superintendent Scott Woolstenhulme said the district sees that experience as something that can benefit more than one classroom.

“So that expertise she brings back, I think, is going to be incredibly helpful to us as a district, as we talk about what are the next steps we need to take to help every student learn the skills they need to be successful for whatever comes next in their lives,” Woolstenhulme said.

Woods has more than 35 years of experience in mathematics and science education. Before the fellowship, she taught advanced mathematics at Thunder Ridge and previously served as the school’s math department chair.

She said much of her work in Washington centered on looking at cutting-edge science and finding ways to make it accessible and relevant to teachers and students.

“How can I bring that into a classroom where it’s accessible to a teacher?” Woods said, describing the question she kept coming back to during the fellowship.

The district’s earlier fellowship update also said Woods worked with national organizations and education leaders as part of her professional development.

Woods completed the 11-month fellowship in July and is now back in Eastern Idaho, where District 93 plans to use her experience to support STEM education across the district.

Woods is also a recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.