Odingo

Odingo Mitchell, M.A. in Physics; Director of Talent Development and Physics, Math and STEM Teacher

Odingo plays a critical leadership role at Cajal Academy both as a classroom STEM teacher and as our first Director of Talent Development. A natural leader, Odingo is adept at mentoring his fellow faculty members and students alike.

Odingo joined Cajal Academy in the fall of 2021. In the classroom, Odingo is an experienced math and physics teacher who is passionate about empowering bright kids with learning differences from the elementary to the high school level. He couples this with a dedication to the scientific process that is borne of his lab experience as a theoretical physicist, and a love for project-based learning as a means to ignite kids’ love of learning. His energy, enthusiasm and positivity helps kids connect to math and science through hands-on experiments and real world applications ranging from engineering to sports.

A former professional table tennis player and Captain of the Jamaican Men’s National Table Tennis Team, Odingo uses athletics as a tool to develop executive function skills and looks for opportunities to integrate sports and leisure to teach science and math curricula—like learning about momentum in a bowling alley! Odingo integrates table tennis into his work with Cajal students, developing important visual tracking, executive function and social skills while promoting healthy physical activity as a means to connect with peers.

Odingo also serves as our first Director of Talent Development. In this role, Odingo mentors his fellow faculty mentors in how to understand and apply Cajal Academy’s unique teaching and student growth methodologies, and aids the Management Team in developing training materials that can be used to foster a next generation of educators both within Cajal Academy and far beyond its walls.

Odingo grew up in Jamaica and has a Master of Arts in Physics from CUNY Brooklyn college.