November 2026: Erin Bontempo

About Erin

Sixteen years ago, after graduating from Rutgers with a degree in Exercise Physiology and working at Princeton Medical Center for a few years, I discovered a passion for educating patients and decided to pursue a teaching degree through the alternate route program.

I have taught physics at both the academic and conceptual levels for the past 14 years, following two years of teaching middle school science. I am currently in my 10th year at Piscataway High School in New Jersey. For the past two years, I have been an active member of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT), becoming increasingly involved in the physics K12 education community through programs such as HEAT and the PTRA Bootcamp. Although the summer meeting in Pasadena was my first AAPT national meeting, it certainly will not be my last. I am already making plans to attend the 2027 summer meeting in Washington, D.C.

In addition to teaching physics, I teach an astronomy elective in our school s planetarium. I also help facilitate planetarium visits for preschool students throughout the district and assist with Saturday shows that are open to the community.