About the Instructor

Fred Mitchell is an experienced chemistry teacher specializing in teaching chemistry to students of all levels.  He is currently employed by Carroll County Public Schools in Hillsville, Virginia serving the high school in several capacities.  Mr. Mitchell is the only chemistry teacher in the high school working with three blocks of students each semester.  On average he teaches 75 students per semester including special education, gifted, and IEP inclusion students.  The 2006-2007 school year will mark 10 years of public education experience

Mr. Mitchell has a chemistry degree from Virginia Tech (1997) with a history minor.  This combination is due to a personal interest in not just chemistry but in the history of science.  Combining history with science adds an interesting dimension to Mr. Mitchell's classes.

In addition to teaching chemistry, Fred has 8 years of experience as the science department chairman.  He also has 7 years of service on the attendance review committee at the high school whose duty is to apply system policies to students in unique situations.  

During the 2005-2006 school year Mr. Mitchell and 4 colleagues developed a plan to integrate math, science, and technology.  This work led to a grant from Hewlett-Packard totaling more than $36,000.  Carroll County High School is proud to be the only high school recipient of this grant in Virginia, West Virginia, or North Carolina.

In recognition of his hard work and effective teaching, Mr. Mitchell was selected as the Teacher of the Year at Carroll County High School for the 2005-2006 school year. 

Personally, Fred lives in Galax with his wife Amanda, a third-grade teacher at Galax Elementary.  When not thinking about chemistry, Fred is a competitive cyclist and travels around the region riding and racing more than 6000 miles a year.  When at home he happily spends time walking Comet (a handsome basset hound). 

fredmitchell@chempluschemistry.com