Andrew Cronk of Southridge High School named Rising Star Technology Teacher of the Year for high school
Andrew Cronk teaches computer science (CS) courses to 9-12 grade high school students at Southridge High School (SRHS) in Beaverton, Oregon with a student population of approximately 1,400 students. Cronk has been working for 27 years in public education in various roles including teacher, administrator, and education policy specialist.
Cronk is currently teaching seven different Computer Science (CS) classes including: Exploring Technology (year-long), Java Programming (year-long), Python Programming (semester-long), Computer Systems (semester-long), Computer Game Design (semester-long), IB Computer Science (year-long), and Cybersecurity (semester-long) for grades 9-12. His classes incorporate non-traditional CS units of study to elevate the achievements of historically overlooked contributors to computer science.
In his Exploring Technology class, students learn to sew using conductive thread to create wristbands and banners that weave circuits and microcontrollers into fabric creations. The Computer Game Design classes teach about color and music theory that students include into sprite designs and soundtracks for video games. Java students seek to solve human problems through code and can choose to take the Oracle 1z0-811 Java Foundations exam. Cybersecurity students learn system administration using a sandboxed Raspberry Pi system. Computer Systems students earn their Acer certificates while learning to repair other student's Chromebooks. He offers four classes for dual credit through Portland Community College and hopes to expand to six classes giving students free, transferrable college credit to reduce the overall cost of a degree.
He is a coach for Southridge's Hawkbot1cs FTC Robotics team and volunteers with these students at Conestoga Middle School to support a FIRST Lego Robotics club. He coordinated a field trip for the Conestoga's Girls who Code club to explore the SRHS CS and Engineering programs.
Cronk collaborates with OCSTA, CS for Oregon, and the Oregon Cybersecurity Center for Excellence (OCCE). Cronk was a reviewer for the CSTA CS standards effort, and contributed to Code.org's Computer Science in an Age of AI publications. He is a regular presenter at OCSTA events and advocacy advisor to the OCSTA Board. Cronk is the primary author of Oregon Department of Education (ODE) Computer Science Education Statewide Implementation Plan. He advocates for foundational computer science through Exploring Computer Science curriculum with CS for Oregon, and is a consultant for OCCE and primary author of their Cybersecurity Education Statewide Implementation Plan.
Future Goals
“My goal is to finish my career teaching at Southridge High School and leave behind a well-conceived sequence of classes that meet students' needs, a body of curriculum that another computer science teacher can easily access and carry forward. I plan to be very active in the next biennium to see that a bill passes in the Oregon Legislature to ensure that all Oregon public school students have access to computer science education,” states Cronk.
Click here to see a complete list of the TechStart technology teachers and students who won TechStart 2026 awards.