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I, Robert Paul Jacobson Sr.,
am the father of two children;
Robert Jr., and Barbara Jean. I grew up in the small town in Michigan’s
Upper Peninsula by the name of Marquette. I am the youngest of three
children having two older sisters: E. Romaine Reed, and Donna Mae Stupar.
I attended John D. Pierce
Laboratory School from kindergarten through grade twelve. It was a small
school in which Northern Michigan College placed many of their student
teachers for their training. There were 32 students in my graduating
class of 1961.
Having a November
birthday, I entered school at the age of four. As I reflect, from my
present vantage point, I think that this may have accounted for a certain
lack of maturity, both academic and social. I had a very difficult time
learning to read, and this problem was compounded in high school and
college. In college, I sought counseling to determine how I might improve
my reading skills. After various tests, I was diagnosed as having
dyslexia.
In high school, I
followed a vocational course of study in industrial arts. During my first
year in college, I became increasingly dissatisfied with this curriculum.
Due to results on an interest test I had taken, I changed my major to
business administration. My newly-elected curriculum required that I have
a laboratory science, so I elected a basic biology course entitled
“Principles of Biology”. This was the first course in my college career
that truly interested me and gave me satisfaction and enjoyment. Still
undecided, I changed my curriculum to general, with a major in biology and
minors in chemistry and sociology. During the three years in this
curriculum, I found that I enjoyed my chemistry and biology courses
equally with a preference for biology courses with chemical explanations.
Due to financial problems
at home, (the company for which my father had worked for 35 years went
bankrupt) I obtained a job in the food services department at Northern
Michigan College while I was a junior in high school. I continued working
nearly full-time throughout my undergraduate college years. However it
was because of this need to help support the family that I was able to
meet the woman who would later become my wife. Alyce was also working her
way through college and because we worked numerous shifts together at
Northern Michigan College we came to know each other well and fell in
love. We were married on the 28th of January, 1967.
Alyce graduated with a
degree in elementary education and I with a Bachelor of Science degree. I
decided to continue my education; and pursued a Master of Arts program in
biology. Frank A. Verley Ph.D. professor of biology and Roger D. Barry
Ph.D. professor of chemistry directed my research, they give me credit for
starting the push to have a Masters degree program in biochemistry at
Northern Michigan University. I performed a qualitative and quantitative
analysis of three estrogens: estrone, 17-beta estradiol, and estriol in
the urine of normal C57BL/6J hybrid and mutant tortoise mice, using
thin-layer chromatography and Beckman’s spectrophotometer.
During the first year of
my graduate studies, I was the University Center night manager. During my
second year, I earned a graduate teaching assistantship in the Common
Learning Program, teaching biology and physical science laboratories.
During the summer of 1969, after receiving my Master of Arts degree, I
taught the lecture and laboratory sections of a physical science class.
In August 1969, I moved
with my wife and son to the Metro-Detroit area. Having been awarded the
DeVlieg fellowship, I began a doctorate program in biochemistry at Gordon
Scott School of Medicine. Due to the fact that I had an inner desire to
become a physician, I put undue pressure upon myself to be number one in
my class so that I would be accepted into the Physician Medical School
program. The stress of maintaining high standards with the added
responsibilities of work and a new marriage and family resulted in my
withdrawal from the program.
It was at that time that
I enrolled in the secondary teaching program at Wayne State University.
In 1970 I earned my provisional teaching certificate in chemistry and
biology. I took a job at Lakeview Senior High School in St. Clair Shores,
Michigan, where I taught science classes there for ten years. I was also
one of the teacher commodores, a long with Peter Lubs. In 1970 we had one
19-foot “Lighting” sailboat with a retraceable center board and the
following year we got a second one as our club had almost doubled in
size. Peter Lubs and I became the sponsors of this club as we both loved
sailing on Lake St. Clair.
In June of 1978, it fell
to my responsibility to request that the life support systems keeping my
father alive be terminated. Naturally, I had a hard time dealing with
that decision. Also, that same year my job at Lakeview was coming to an
end due to declining enrollment. In November of 1979, with the aid of
psychiatric counseling, I was made aware that I harbored a desire to
become a medical doctor so that I would have been able to “save” my
father’s life when he suffered numerous heart attacks throughout my
teenage years. It is because of this inner desire that I directed many of
my students into medical and chemical careers.
My teaching experience
follows (in chronological order): I began as a graduate assistant at
Northern Michigan University, teaching freshman and sophomores in physical
science in 1968-1969. I was a substitute teacher in Macomb County,
1969-1970. Part of that time was a long-term assignment for eight weeks
in a general science course at Grant Junior High School in East Detroit
Public Schools. Later on that year I did my directed teaching at East
Detroit High School with Raymond Doucher in chemistry and biology
classes. After receiving my secondary provisional certificate, from
Wayne State University, I obtained employment in the Lakeview Public
Schools and taught the following courses for the period from 1970 to
1980: general biology, molecular biology, earth and space science,
health, CHEM Study chemistry, qualitative analysis, and organic
chemistry. I personally proposed and developed an organic chemistry class
at Lakeview High School along with two of my former Lakeview students,
Michelle Lesnau now Dr. Michelle Handley M.D. and Richard Handley Ph.D. in
organic chemistry.
In the fall of 1980 my
teaching career moved to Chippewa Valley Schools in Clinton Township where
I taught high school chemistry, honors chemistry, physical science,
biology, advanced biology, advance chemistry, and AIDS instruction. In
1983 I also taught at Macomb County Community College.
Some of my more
note-worthy accomplishments are as follows: I am a
dyslexic with a B.S.,
M.A., M.A.T., and a Ph.D.. I have been happily married to Alyce June
(Krause) Jacobson for many years. We have two children, Robert Paul
Jacobson Jr.and a daughter Mrs. Barbara Jean
(Jacobson) Graves. I am the proud
grandfather of Zachary Jacob Graves, Carter Jason Graves and Aja Christine Jacobson. I am a
member of St. Germaine Catholic Church in St. Clair Shores and have acted
as a lector and Eucharistic Minister since 1986.
In education and
leadership rolls I have been the chemistry consortium leader between the
21 public schools in Macomb County and the Macomb Intermediate School
District, MISD, and Macomb County College, MCC. I was one of the Michigan
Education Association, MEA, delegates to the National Education
Association, NEA, lobbying for a separate cabinet post for education in
1977. While at Lakeview I was the co-chairperson of the Secondary
Curriculum Committee, Vice-president of the Lakeview Education
Association, and political action co-chairperson. Also at Lakeview I was
an active member of the following organizations: Student Code of Conduct
Committee, Human Sexuality Program (Developer for grades K-12), Building
Needs Committee and the Sick Bank Committee. During my tenure at Chippewa
Valley Schools, I initiated and coordinated the Science Olympiad program
for the district. We have been very successful at the Macomb County
level, as well as the state of Michigan level with our teams. I have also
been active as a committee member for our District Science Curriculum
Council, Computer Assisted Instruction programs, teacher In-Service, and
Open House committees. I have reviewed and contributed to two national
textbooks, BSCS Blue Version, Biological Sciences, A
Molecular Approach by Heath Publishing Company in 1980
and Chemistry, A Modern Course, Merrill
Publishing Company in 1987. In 1983 I had the opportunity to begin
working with some very hardworking and dedicated educators from Macomb
County. In alphabetical order they are: Carol Basney, James (Jim) Edoff,
Ruth Cummins, Allan Jacobs, George Kaligaris, Karen Lancour, Robert (Bob)
Jacobs, Vern Marrow, Patti Smith, Trica Stone, Viginia Wood and many
others. Most of these individuals are still involved in Science Olympiad
today at local, state, national, and international levels. We did events,
then we went out and taught other teachers in our workshops. We also run
local, state, as well as national level tournaments, and acted on numerous
committees for Science Olympiad. I have also been a free-lance chemistry
writer for Addison-Wesley Publishing Company since 1990. I have conducted
national workshops in chemistry for the National Science Olympiad for the
following events: CHEM Labs, Periodic Table, Titration Race and
Qualitative Analysis. I helped develop a flow chart for the teaching of
organic chemistry with two of my chemistry colleagues, David Heafield and
Walter Andriaschko and copy wrote it in 1989. Brian Zuzga did all of the
computer graphs for me to publish the chart. I have presented this chart
at our state, MSTA conference in Lansing, Michigan in 1990 as well as at
the national, NSTA, conference held in Atlanta, Georgia in 1990. I was
also invited to present at the international CHEM Ed conference in 1991 in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin. My hobbies are flying, photography (aerial, nature,
and family), construction (I built our summer home),
sailing, power boating, swimming, four wheeling, motorcycling, and biking.
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