Charles A. Bottinelli OBITUARY

Charles A. Bottinelli OBITUARY

Dr. Charles Bottinelli died in Littleton, Colorado on August 23, 2024, at 81 years of age of prostate cancer. Known to thousands of former students and colleagues as “Dr. B,” Charles’ career as a Colorado science educator spanned fifty years and three generations of students. Charles was born in Longmont, Colorado on April 5, 1943, to Charles R. Bottinelli and Ada Pellillo. He graduated from Longmont High School (1961) and the University of Colorado (Boulder) in 1965 with a degree in chemistry, and earned Colorado teacher certification in secondary science in 1966. He married Marian Kay Johnson of Longmont in 1964. They raised two children: Nicholas Anthony and Jared Neil. Charles taught twelve years in the Denver Public Schools (DPS) at Thomas Jefferson Jr. – Sr. High School and Hamilton Junior High School where he was chair of the science department and faculty building committee, sponsor of Hamilton’s Environment Club, co-sponsor of the Hamilton Ski Club, and taught science in 7th — 9th grades. He developed, pilot-tested, and taught a popular two-semester environmental science elective titled “Man and Earth” for ninth graders. On a sabbatical leave from the DPS, he returned to the University of Colorado, earning a master’s degree in environmental education in 1975 and a doctorate in secondary science education in 1980. In 1979, he and a fellow doctoral student founded Energy Information Associates, Inc., a Littleton, Colorado firm, specializing in energy education consultation and energy conservation projects for state energy offices and state departments of education in several states for eight years. During this period, when the U.S. faced a prolonged energy supply problem, Dr. Bottinelli was invited to speak on hundreds of occasions to adult audiences, giving his trademark lecture, “What You Should Know About the Energy Problem.” He developed two published educational simulations that taught the legislative process, The (Colorado) Lawmakers and Enterprise (New Mexico) which focused on energy/environmental issues, and he implemented workshops for teachers and students in their application for twenty-five years. In 1985, Dr. Bottinelli joined the Educational Services Unit at Public Service Company of Colorado, where he was invited by teachers to visit secondary schools in the PSCo service territory to present classroom and school assembly programs that taught energy concepts. He also organized and taught adult energy classes and workshops where science teachers earned college credit. In 1990, Charles joined Enterprise for Education, a California firm, where as VP, he trained secondary teachers in the nation’s urban school districts how to infuse energy education concepts in their teaching. His marriage to Marian ended in 1987. Charles married Roseanna M. Lucero of Denver, an administrative assistant at Xcel Energy in 1992, gaining a daughter, Shannon Day Lucero (Miltenberger), in the marriage. Charles began a 20-year tenure in the Littleton Public Schools in 1995, where he was chair of the science department and taught science in Grades 6, 7 & 8. In 1999, he was honored by being named one of 39 honorees of Walt Disney’s American Teacher Awards from a nominating field of 75,000 U.S. teachers. In 2011, he was named Outstanding Middle School Physical Science Teacher of the Year by the Colorado Association of Science Teachers (CAST). He was an avid proponent of encouraging girls to pursue advanced courses and careers in science, math, and engineering in high school and college. He authored several papers in the field of energy education, and was a member of various national and state educational organizations. Charles was a dedicated life-long learner, an avid science reader and promoter of climate change science and population education. He recently found joy in playing the clarinet again, after a 60-year hiatus, and especially enjoyed playing cornet/clarinet duets with his youngest grandchild. In 2021, with the leadership of nephew Ryan Claussen, converted two bays of the family’s garage into a modern wood working studio, where he designed and constructed hundreds of jewelry and keepsake boxes, currently advertised on Etsy at www.BotterShop.store. He is survived by his wife (Roseanna), two sons (Nicholas of Denver and Jared of Los Lunas, NM) and daughter (Shannon Miltenberger of Littleton); his six grandchildren (Braden, Antonia, Andre, Sofia, Kayla, and Jacob) and two great-grandchildren (Bria and Brynlee), and his brother, Dr. Robert L. Bottinelli and his family in Grand Blanc and Rockford, Ml. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to the National Center for Science Education, PO Box 9477, Berkeley, CA 94709-0477, The Population Connection, 2120 L Street, Washington, DC 20037, and to the Union of Concerned Scientists, Two Brattle Square, Cambridge, MA 02138.