Kelli McIntosh is a physics-teacher-turned-freelance-STEM-educator. Her main client, LearningMate Solutions, serves public charter schools around the country. Her curriculum work includes authoring, accuracy checking, and revising curricula for Engineering, Physics, and Math courses. She used to think it would be really fun to solve math and physics problems as part of her job, and she is currently realizing that dream.
Kelli works on a variety of pursuits in the name of educating others. When the itch to be in a classroom starts, she handles it by visiting FCPS elementary schools with Farm to School Frederick to talk about local agriculture and nutrition. The best part is encouraging students to try new foods!
Extracurriculars
Outside of work life, Kelli loves immersing herself in nature. Whether it’s having morning coffee in her yard, where she can admire the native plant species and stalk the monarch caterpillars as they (hopefully) become butterflies, or hiking with her family. She’s been known to take more pictures of wildlife and landscapes than people and events on vacation!
Why we love Kelli
Kelli is one of the most extroverted members at Cowork Frederick and she wields her power with grace. New Members and visiting Day Pass Holders can count on, not just a personal greeting, but intentional connection with Kelli. The educator’s ability to take complex knowledge and make it accessible to learners extends to the way she interacts with fellow members overall, whether it be professionally or personally. And we’ll just say it – she’s downright hilarious.
Q&A with Kelli
How did you get into freelance STEM education?
I relocated from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Frederick straight out of college to take a position as a physics teacher. I taught a variety of ages and subjects (always math and science) over a span of 16 years. Throughout that time I built my family, which has somewhat dictated the type of work I have pursued. The combination of balancing teaching with family led to the freelance work I’m doing now.
Which of the guiding values defined by Cowork Frederick members speaks to you?
Balance is a constant struggle for me, because I want to “get it right”. I don’t want to work too much or too little. I don’t want to be an overbearing parent, but I do want to be supportive. I don’t want my house to feel like a frat house, but cleanliness is overrated. As a type A or left-brained person, it can be hard for me to realize that the gray area between black and white is a wide space. There isn’t only one way to “get it right.”
What’s a significant business mistake you made and learned from it?
I offered to take a shortcut to save my client some money. I thought I could reuse/revise/revamp something I’d done for them previously, but that resulted in a less successful outcome for them and less income for me. To say it in another way, I’ve learned that it’s not up to me to save on costs. My time is valuable, my expertise is appreciated and needed by clients. Iff they want to negotiate a lower-quality outcome to lower costs, they can always ask me, and I can always decline.
Who/What inspires you and keeps you going?
My kids like to spend my money so I have to keep working. KIDDING! I believe that much of teaching and curriculum content comes from the idea that the topics are complex, so we should just accept it and muscle through learning it all. I hate that! STEM isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and there is a way to blend creativity and curiosity so that everyone can enjoy learning it. Teachers don’t need to prove how smart they are. “I don’t know” is a perfectly good, honest answer to a question.
Why Cowork Frederick?
Everything you could possibly need is here – the environment feels like home, but it is productive, fun, and unpretentious. I don’t like it when people take themselves or their career too seriously! Coming here allows me to be a little social if I want, but I also find that I get more done when I break the monotony of working from home.
For those who want to learn more, how can you be reached?