Summer research opportunities for science high-school teachers in partnership with faculty members at Arizona universities
The objective of this program is to provide Arizona high-school science teachers the opportunity to work on summer research projects in collaboration with individual science faculty at universities within the state. The main goals of this program are to help improve grade 9-12 science education and increase the number of students who choose to pursue science careers.
Research Corporation has joined with the M.J.Murdock Charitable Trust in a cooperative venture to bring the research opportunities offered by Partners in Science to Arizona high-school teachers. While the Murdock Trust will continue supporting opportunities for high-school teachers in the Pacific Northwest, Research Corporation will fund awards in Arizona.
For more information about this program and for complete guidelines, please visit the following website: http://www.murdock-trust.org/grants/partners-science.php or contact Silvia Ronco at sronco@rescorp.org.
Eligibility
Applications are accepted from science faculty at Arizona universities who have established a research partnership with a high-school teacher. A principal investigator must have an active research program and hold an appointment in a natural science department. High-school teachers should have academic degrees in appropriate disciplines and must have a high-school appointment in Arizona. In 2009 we are piloting the program with the University of Arizona with the hope of finding a partner to extend the program to all three state universities in the future.
Applications
The proposal submission deadline is December 1, 2009. Applications must conform to guidelines and directions, and must be endorsed by the institution. All potential applicants begin the submission process by completing the Eligibility Quiz. If eligible, you will be able to download the application materials and complete electronic submission. No hard copy submission is required. Completed applications will be reviewed by a committee set up by the Murdock Trust. To view and print a sample application form click here. To view and print a sample application form click here.
Please see our current press release: Research Awards to Improve Science Education in Arizona High Schools
Budgets
Awards are in the amount of $14,000, budgeted over two years, with the following breakdown:
First Year | Second Year | |
| High-school teacher stipend | $5,000 | $5,000 |
| Discretionary funds | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Academic-year enrichment | 500 | 500 |
| Travel funds (annual conference)* | 500 | 500 |
| TOTAL | $7,000 | $7,000 |
*Travel funds are meant to be used to cover transportation costs to the conference. All other conference expenses (lodging and meals) are covered by the foundation.
A team from Columbia University recently published an article on their Partners in Science program.
New York City high-school science teachers taking part in Columbia University's Summer Research Program showed decreased job attrition, and their students passed state-mandated science exams at a 10 percent higher rate than students of teachers who did no summer research. These results showed up three and four years after teachers participated in the program. See the Columbia University study.
Building Arizona's Scientific Workforce
By Jaimie Leopold
Eight local high-school science teachers recently showcased the work they've done in UA research labs as participants in the University of Arizona 2009 Summer Teacher Research Symposium.
Excited voices filled a top floor at the UA Life Sciences South building as they were joined for a poster session by many of their UA research partners and dozens of other science teachers from across Arizona. Scientists often display their work in large posters; each teacher described his or her work in projects that included cancer research, disease prevention, and even plant research focused on chili peppers grown in Tucson backyards.
The projects were funded by Research Corporation for Science Advancement (RCSA) and its Partners in Science program.
"The Partners program engages teachers in cutting-edge research and provides an opportunity to discuss how they will translate these experiences into classroom instruction," said Dr. Lisa Elfring, the program's UA campus coordinator.
Lynne Marie Cote, a Mountain View High science teacher, said her Partners experience will allow her to contribute to the statewide biotechnology committee on which she currently serves.
"I've been doing research that's so new that it's not being taught yet," Cote said. She worked in molecular & cellular biologist Vicki Chandler's Bio5 lab at the UA. (Bio5 is the university's interdisciplinary science program based on the powerful new paradigm of genomics, which is bringing together researchers from medicine, biology, agriculture and other areas to do 21st century science.) Chandler's RNA experiment with maize was noted by Discover magazine as one of the top six scientific discoveries in 20
Cote said, "My research resulted in discovering two new alleles and possibly a new gene involved in gene silencing. I've been able to work in the field this year; I will build on it when I return for next year's summer research. What I really love is that I will be able to teach my students to think outside the box!"
Other teachers said the experience has boosted their commitment to professional growth as science instructors. The UA scientists said their time with the teachers has fostered an understanding of the importance of teaching hands-on science in the classroom.
"The main goals of the Partners in Science program are to help improve grade 9-12 science education and increase the number of students who choose to pursue science careers," said Silvia Ronco, a chemist and the RCSA program officer who oversees Partners for the Foundation.
RCSA joined with the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust in a cooperative venture to bring the program to Arizona high-school teachers, Ronco said. While the Murdock Trust supports opportunities for teachers in the Pacific Northwest, RCSA funds awards in Arizona.
It's part of a growing movement to improve the nation's STEM education, said RCSA President and CEO Jim Gentile, a genetic toxicologist. He added that RCSA recently published a book by noted science-education writer Sheila Tobias and Tucson Salpointe High School Science Chair Anne Baffert on the need to professionalize science and math teaching in our nation's high schools. (The book, Science Teaching as a Profession: Why It isn't, How it Could Be, is available for free downloading on the RCSA website, http://www.rescorp.org.)
"We need to move America ahead in creating new knowledge, products and a new economy," Gentile said. "We need the talents of our young people focused on taking risks in business and in education as they tackle the great challenges of the next 50 years. The National Science Board has urged us to improve our science education if we hope to remain competitive in the global economy. That's why RCSA believes active stewardship is required to foster teaching science as a professional endeavor."
The proposal submission deadline for the next round of Partners in Science awards is December 1, 2009. Applications must conform to guidelines and directions, and must be endorsed by the institution. All potential applicants begin the submission process by completing the Eligibility Quiz. If eligible, candidates will be able to download the application materials and complete electronic submission. No hard-copy submission is required. Completed applications will be reviewed by a committee set up by the Murdock Trust. To view and print a sample application form click here. To view and print a sample application form click here.
Jaimie Leopold is a longtime education activist in Arizona and a senior consultant for Tucson-based Research Corporation for Science Advancement, America's first foundation dedicated solely to science, founded in 1912.