Before Class With Jon Marlow, Science Department Chair

Getting Hands-On With STEM

Experience really is the best teacher at The Hive. A scientist by training, Jon Marlow brings real-world applications into the classroom to advance students’ understanding of STEM and create more opportunities for Gray Bees.

We are doing this interview very early in the morning. How come?

My office hours start at 6:30 a.m., Monday-Friday, for kids who get here early or live at Leahy House. Religious teacher Grace Lenahan has the same hours. I open for business early for kids who have questions about my class or need a quiet place to work. It’s also when I do my planning and get caught up. It just works for me. Plus, I’ve been a morning person my entire life. 

You were a scientist for a federal agency before becoming a teacher. What led you to teaching and to St. Benedict’s Prep? 

I’m a hydrologist by training and spent 17 years working for the U.S. Geological Survey in the Water Resources Division. Part of the job was research — conducting hydrologic studies and collecting meteorological data — but really, I was hired to be the project manager of flood warning systems in New Jersey. I was involved in the design, installation and maintenance of all flood warning systems in New Jersey, including the first tidal flood warning system in the northeastern U.S. When I started to sour on the work, my wife suggested teaching. She clearly knows me better than I do myself; I had never even considered teaching, but it has proven to be what I was meant to do.

I’d never even heard of St. Benedict’s Prep, but as soon as I set foot in the lobby, I thought, “This place feels like home.” I was interviewed by the students, which I wasn’t expecting, and learned I’d gotten the position at the 11th hour before Summer Phase 2011 started. This was the door that opened for me, and it’s proven to work out. 

You introduced Engineering Fundamentals to The Hive. How did the course come about?

The class started a few years after I got here during Summer Phase. It was a pretty popular class, so we decided to make it a full-term course and added a math prerequisite. Students who’ve passed Geometry can take Engineering Fundamentals so it’s mostly UD2s and seniors taking Algebra II or Calculus. This allows us to do more interesting things on the engineering front. The goal is to expose students to what engineering is. The course originated through College Placement and Career Development. Students would say, ‘I want to study engineering in college,’ but didn’t know anything about it. The idea was to expose students to the different fields of engineering, the kinds of projects engineers work on and what they need to be successful in the profession. The class is only offered in Fall Term, and I try to hit the Big Four — mechanical, chemical, civil and electrical engineering. 

What kind of projects do the students work on?

Water-powered rockets are a big hit. I started that project last fall. Students build rockets from two-liter soda bottles. They create fins for the rockets to fly, figure out the pressures and there’s a lot of math involved. They also do follow-up analysis on why the rocket behaved the way it did. 

Another project involves the rain garden on the north side of the Property near Springfield Avenue. Most people don’t realize it’s a detention basin designed to control the water that runs off the roof. The wildflowers and plants are there for a reason; it’s a flood control mechanism. We use it in the class; students design their own detention basin. The balsa wood tower project happens at the end of the term. Students build structures out of balsa wood according to certain specifications. They design them, build them and then we take them over to the CrossFit or weight room and we crush them to see how much weight they can hold. There’s a lot of analysis associated with that project, as well. 

What do you hope students take from Engineering Fundamentals?

I think students get a better feeling for what engineering is. There is also the practical application of the math that they’re learning. A lot of times kids come into the classroom scared of math or think the math they are learning is useless. Once they start applying it, they start putting the pieces together. I’ve heard students say, ‘I’m taking Calculus, and I never knew what this formula was for. Now I see its use.’ It’s a good lesson for math teachers, too. There isn’t a student on the planet who hasn’t asked, ‘How the heck am I ever going to use Algebra?’

In addition to teaching, you are now Science Department Chair. Where is STEM headed at The Hive?

There’s a giant list I can share (see sidebar for a sampling). Because we are educators, the purpose of all of these courses and projects is to expose students to STEM-related possibilities in their futures while also teaching science, technology, engineering and math. In my experience, when people hear ‘STEM,’ they often think that those are avenues restricted to students who are ‘good at’ math and science. 

The reality is that curiosity is the only required entry point and that creativity and imagination are most valued in these fields. Math and science are learnable skills and tools we use in the STEM world; we can teach you those.  

The 2024-25 academic year marks Jon Marlow’s 14th year at The Hive. He holds a B.S. in Hydrology, M.S. in Hydrology and M.Ed. in Teaching and Teacher Education from The University of Arizona. Mr. Marlow is co-moderator of Joe Kasberger.

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STEM STRONG

A sampling of longstanding and new STEM initiatives 

ACE Mentor Program of New Jersey — Prep Division students, UD1 and up, work in teams on the design and presentation of a real-world engineering project in a statewide competition. 

 

Longstanding partnership with Rutgers-Newark Geoscience Department strengthened in 2024-25. Associate Headmaster for Academics Michelle Tuorto H’16 began the program, which has evolved into graduate students sharing their research with Gray Bees and conducting related hands-on lessons. The graduate students also work with the Girls Prep Division in the biology class taught by Paulette Anderson-Spence. 

 

3-D Design and Fabrication course in Summer Phase (and soon in Spring Phase) has students use simple CAD to design 3-D printing, laser engraving and CNC milling projects, and then construct them with SBP machines. The course is taught by Jon Marlow.

 

Student Chapter of National Society of Black Engineers established at The Hive by math teacher J’Ream Lewis ’10. Mr. Lewis also moderates a STEM club where students learn basic robotics. 

 

Forensic Science, a hands-on investigative class taught by Danielle Laube, was introduced in the Boys Prep Division this year. In the Girls Prep Division, students may soon view the night sky using high-powered telescopes, in an Astronomy & Optics elective taught by Marisol Guerra.