User:Mrayton

Robert Ayton was born in Abington, Pennsylvania. He received his B.S. in Chemistry degree from Grove City College and M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction degree summa cum laude from Concordia University. He currently teaches Advanced Placement Chemistry and Advanced Placement Physics at Redeemer Christian School in Ocala, FL.

After graduating as an Associate Member of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society and American Chemical Society Member at Grove City College in 1999, Robert was a chemist and laboratory manager at Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Research Services, Inc. (PMRS, Inc.) in Horsham, Pennsylvania. At PMRS, Robert led an elite team of analytical chemists dedicated to improving the quality of lives through Phase III stability determination of Merck pharmaceutical products. During his tenure there, he supervised the successful approval of four New Drug Applications by the Food and Drug Administration.

In 2005, Robert began his calling in teaching at Dunnellon High School where he has built an Advanced Placement science program that serves almost 8% of the school population while scoring consistently at the top in the district, despite teaching at its poorest and most rural high school. During Robert’s service in education, he has received numerous awards such as being chosen as Golden Apple Teacher in 2012, Florida state-finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) award in 2011, and Rookie Teacher of the Year for Marion County, Florida in 2007. He has been a Main Conference Presenter at the National Advanced Placement Conference in 2011 on his exemplary, new methodology for teaching Chemical Equilibrium, speaks regularly at local and state conferences on topics of education and pedagogy approaches in the areas of science education. He also maintains a chemistry website, www.mrayton.com, which teachers and students around the nation access to prepare for the rigorous AP Chemistry exam. In 2014, Robert was named the American Chemical Society Florida High School Teacher of the Year.