Fremont teacher honored by Trine’s ECE department

Trine University’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering recently presented its annual Outstanding High School Teaching Award to Eric Wirick, a teacher at Fremont High School.

The award honors a teacher with exceptional dedication to inspiring students to pursue mathematics, science and engineering careers. It includes a $250 cash stipend and a commemorative plaque.

Wirick was nominated by Zakeri Pica, a software engineering major from Fremont.

Pica, who had Wirick for Digital Applications and Advanced Business Application classes, said Wirck’s teaching style and the opportunities he provided sparked the curiosity and problem-solving mindset that led him toward his major, as well as a data science minor.

“During my Advanced Business Applications class, I had a free period immediately afterward. Mr. Wirick allowed me to stay in his classroom, which gave me the chance to work on assignments and, eventually, to help other students troubleshoot issues they encountered during class,” Pica said. “This experience led me to discover how much I enjoyed working through problems — whether it was identifying errors in Access queries or fixing functions in Excel.”

“My interest in tools like Access and Excel grew into a broader appreciation for working with data, and I still apply many of the skills I learned in his classes today.”