South Pole Bound Washington-Lee teacher to conduct research in Antarctica.

KATHERINE SHIREY prefers warm climates. She’s vacationed in Colombia, Costa Rica, Belize and other tropical locales. But in January 2011, this Washington-Lee High School physics teacher will be traveling to Antarctica, the coldest place on Earth, to conduct experimental research. “I’d much rather prefer to go to a warm climate but that’s just not where the action is,” Shirey said.