Amir Muhsin Abo-Shaeer (; born March 20, 1972) is an American teacher and mechanical engineer. In 2001, during his first year of teaching, he established the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy (DPEA) on the

Dos Pueblos High School Dos Pueblos High School is a public high school located in Goleta, California, northwest of Santa Barbara. Located adjacent to the foothills on the edge of the Goleta Valley in an area known as El Encanto Heights, it serves a student body of app ...

campus. In addition to being the Director of the DPEA, he teaches physics, engineering, robotics, machining, and manufacturing. His focused outreach efforts have yielded 50% female student enrollment in the DPEA. He also ran FRC

Team 1717 Team 1717, D’Penguineers, were a FIRST Robotics team associated with the Dos Pueblos High School Engineering Academy (DPEA) in Goleta, California. D’Penguineers have won multiple awards at the regional and international levels of the FIRST ...

as part of the academy program. He was named a

MacArthur Fellow The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and 30 individuals workin ...

in 2010. He is the first high school teacher to win the award, as well as the first FIRST mentor to win the award for work relating to FIRST robotics.

Early life and education

Shaeer was born to an Iraqi Muslim father and an Irish-American mother in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, where his father was teaching physics at the university. Before his first birthday, his family returned to

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

, where he has resided ever since. He graduated from

and attended the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

, where he earned a B.S. in

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

, a

M.S. A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine ...

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

, and a M.Ed. in

secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...

Career

Shaeer began his career as a

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations o ...

in the private sector. He worked on research and development in

academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial, and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astron ...

, and

telecommunications Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...

before deciding to pursue a career in education. Early on, he taught physics, wrote the curriculum, and developed courses for the DPEA. He eventually decided that the capstone course for the senior class would revolve around the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), which requires students to design and construct a robot to compete against other robots in a game challenge that is different every year. The DPEA is known as

in the FIRST community. In 2007, he garnered a $3 million California state matching grant to create a engineering facility on the high school campus to support the implementation of the Career Technical Education (CTE) curriculum he created. The building opened in October 2011 and is currently in use. On September 29, 2010, Congresswoman

Lois Capps Lois Ragnhild Capps (née Grimsrud; January 10, 1938) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1998 to 2017. She is a member of the Democratic Party. The district, numbered as the 22nd District from 1998 to 200 ...

congratulated him on the floor of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

for winning the MacArthur Fellowship.

Media

''The New York Times''-bestselling author

Neal Bascomb Neal Bascomb (born 1971) is an American journalist and author. He is known for his books on popular history. Early life and education He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Miami University with a B.A. in Economics and English Literature. Career Af ...

wrote a book chronicling Abo-Shaeer’s teaching and his 2009 FIRST robotics team’s competition season. ''The New Cool'' was released on March 1, 2011.

Personal life

Shaeer and his wife, Emily, have a daughter.

Awards and honors

* 2008 Goleta Educator of the Year * 2008 Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition * 2009 Santa Barbara Rotary Outstanding Service Award * 2010

MacArthur Fellowship The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

* 2011 FIRST Woodie Flowers Award – Los Angeles Regional * 2013 Distinguished Educator Award from the Paul Allen Family Foundation * 2013 Distinguished Alumni Award, University of California, Santa Barbara * 2013 Marvyn Melvin Distinguished Teacher Award, Santa Barbara County Education Office

References

External links

Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy

DPEA Foundation

Dos Pueblos High School

Neal Bascomb

Amir Abo-Shaeer on CNN's Most Intriguing People
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abo-Shaeer, Amir MacArthur Fellows Living people 1972 births University of California, Santa Barbara alumni American engineers American physicists American people of Iraqi descent American people of Irish descent