Long-time Gulf High School science teacher Margaret Peek will retire, effective tomorrow. Ms. Peek joined the GHS faculty in the 1973-74 school year, when Gulf High School was on Louisiana Avenue in the building now occupied by Gulf Middle School. She has for many years been the chair of the science department, and has taught most of the advanced science courses. She was named the Gulf Teacher of the Year four times, in 1975-76, 1978-79, 1984-85, and 1999-2000. She was a candidate to be the first Teacher in Space aboard the Challenger Shuttle; she and her class watched the vehicle explode after liftoff. She holds a B. S. degree in Chemistry from the University of Miami, an M. A. degree in Science Education/ Chemistry from the University of South Florida, and has done additional coursework at the University of California at Berkeley. She is certified in Florida in three areas—chemistry, biology, and physics. She has also been part of the adjunct faculty at Hillsborough Community College and Pasco-Hernando Community College. She graduated from H. B. Plant High School in Tampa. Ms. Peek was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her mother worked in the Manhattan Project under J. R. Oppenheimer at Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
