The Notre Dame extended Research Community (NDeRC) will gather education and research professionals for the fifth annual Collaborating for Education and Research Forum from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday (Feb. 25) in the Jordan Hall of Science at the University of Notre Dame.
The event fosters interaction among K-12 teachers and administrators; university faculty, graduate students and staff; and local industry specialists in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The forum showcases a broad spectrum of professional engagement opportunities for K-12 educators, including summer- or week-long opportunities in nanotechnology, genetics, embryonic development, environmental studies, astronomy, subatomic physics, engineering, mathematics and science. All of the programs are free to educators, while some programs also provide stipends.
Presenters will include representatives from NDeRC, the Institute for Educational Initiatives, the Center for Sustainable Energy at Notre Dame, ETHOS (Encouraging Technology & Hands On Science), Riverbend Community Math Center and others. Special educational opportunities associated with the rare transit of Venus across the sun that will be visible in June will be addressed.
NDeRC sponsors opportunities for University researchers and students to collaborate with local K-12 educators through summer-long research experiences for teachers, as well as week-long institutes for teachers paired with week-long classroom activities in K-12 schools. Institutes are offered in biology (BioEYES), environmental science, nanotechnology and earth-space science. BioEYES alone, which uses zebra fish to teach embryonic development and genetics in school classrooms, reaches some 5,000 students per year in Michiana schools.
The event is sponsored by Notre Dame and the National Science Foundation. The complete schedule and registration information is available at events.michianastem.org.
Contact: Thomas Loughran, 574-631-3362, Thomas.J.Loughran.8@nd.edu
Written by Marissa Gebhard