Chocolate is more than a sweet treat; it’s the foundation of groundbreaking research and hands-on learning for Peoria Public Schools educator Emily Dawson.
Dawson, who teaches at PPS while pursuing graduate research at Western Illinois University for her third master's degree in chemistry, has been awarded the prestigious Forrest E. Mars, Jr. Chocolate History Grant, receiving $10,000 to study cacao chemistry and history. Her project, “Cacao Chronicles: Writing Hawaii’s Chocolate Story Through Chemistry,” uses advanced laboratory analysis to create a chemical “fingerprint” that links flavor, farming conditions, and regional history.
Through this partnership, Dawson is bringing authentic research directly into classrooms, working with 17 students from Mark Bills, two from Reservoir Gifted Academy, and four from Richwoods High School. Students are learning analytical chemistry techniques while exploring cacao’s journey to Hawaii in the late 1800s.
“Students are not just learning about chemistry; they are using chemistry to uncover history,” Dawson said.