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My family includes 4 humans and 3 dogs. In the photo above are my kids, Sarah (BG class of 2017) and Noah (BG class of 2020). My husband, Don, and I have been married for 25 years. In the picture are three of our dogs, (L to R) Patti, Cooper and Freddie. This picture was taken in 2019, and since then our Cooper passed away. So now we have a new dog, Greta, that joined the family a year ago.

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WELCOME TO BG!  My name is Sindi Smith and I teach freshman Honors Biology and AP Biology.  I also coach the Science Olympiad team and am the Graduation sponsor.

I grew up in Hoffman Estates and attended Fremd High School.  My parents just moved out of my childhood home to a smaller house in Algonquin.  I have two younger brothers and 3 nephews on my family's side.  I have 2 nieces and a nephew on my husband's side.  I also have a big family.  At Thanksgiving, I sometimes host up to 60 people.  It's crazy, but my favorite holiday!

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Sarah is 22 years old and graduated from the University of Minnesota in December 2020.  She is taking a gap year to live in downtown Chicago with two of her best friends and work at a law firm as a paralegal.  Then, in fall of 2022 she will start law school...location to be determined.  She is funny and creative  - and would love to be a tattoo artist on her days off at the law firm.

Noah is 19 and is a sophomore at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (UNC).  He managed to make some great friends and learn a lot last year, despite having all online classes.  The bonus was that he was able to do a lot of traveling during the school year because all his classes were remote.  He is studying business, but he has no idea exactly what he wants to do as a career.  He is very motivated and determined...and would love to one day run his own business!

My husband Don and I have been married for 25 years. He grew up in a small town near Joliet, IL and was one of the few kids in his graduating class to move to the "big city." He loves to hike, run (he has done many marathons AND an Ironman triathlon), bike, and spend time in the mountains. He and Noah are working their way around the country seeing a football game at every professional stadium in the US. He also spends a lot of time going to live concerts and talking music with Sarah.

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I graduated from Fremd High School in Palatine where biology was my favorite class!  I was active in high school as a member of student council, the ski club, and on both the soccer and track teams.  My youngest brother is now a teacher at Fremd and a soccer coach for both the boys and girls teams.

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I did my undergrad at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.  I was a biology major for all 4 years.  My favorite classes included Greek Mythology, Genetics, Anatomy, and Physiology.  I met my husband my freshman year, but we didn't start dating until the last month of senior year!

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I received my first Masters degree from Northwestern University.  Since I got my bachelor's degree in Biology, I needed to get a master's degree to be able to be a teacher.  While in grad school, I did my student teaching here at BGHS...this is the only school I have ever taught at!

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This year I am teaching freshman Honors Biology and AP Biology (juniors & seniors).  If this past crazy year has taught me anything, it's that SCIENCE is an important part of our everyday lives.  So much of what we will learn this year directly relates to what we see and hear about in the news every day!

Since I started teaching at BG, I have taught Prep Biology, General Biology, Honors Biology, AP Biology, Advanced Biology, and Human Physiology.  I'm so lucky to be able to share what I've learned over the past 28 years of teaching with all of you!

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I am a co-sponsor and coach for Science Olympiad at BG.  It is a perfect club for anyone who likes any type of science, might want to go into a science-related career, or likes to think creatively.  We welcome everyone to take part in the competitions.  It's a great way to meet new people and dig deeper into science topics that interest you!

I also plan and run Graduation each year.  It's a great job for me because it requires a lot of organization, which is one of my strengths.  I like planning an event that celebrates our students and recognizes all they have achieved over their 4 years at BG.

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I LOVE to travel.  We have a board at home that allows us to put pins in each place we travel to.  We have been to many places in the US (including many National Parks), Europe and South America.

In 2018, I took a group of 50 students to the Galápagos Islands.  It was the adventure of a lifetime - we saw amazing islands and incredible animals including seals, blue-footed boobies, and tortoises!  In 2019, I took students to Iceland where we got to soak in the Blue Lagoon and see the unique landscape.  I will be taking a group of students to the Galápagos this spring (2022).  After that, I'm looking to take kids to the Amazon jungle in 2023!

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We are a very active family. We love to hike, bike, mountain climb, and workout. We are building a house in Idaho and look forward to adding snow shoeing, downhill skiing, and cross-country skiing to our list of hobbies.

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I enjoy giving back to the community in a number of different ways.  At BG, I run the Comfort Closet.  We provide hygienic products to BG families for FREE!

I also enjoy volunteering for our community hospice and hope one day to have a therapy dog that I can take into hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, and hospice facilities.

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The best way to reach me is by email:

sindi.smith@d214.org