NYSSELA Luncheon at the 117th Annual STANYS Conference

Join us on Monday, November 5, 2012 as we honor a past president of NYSSELA, Nicholas Hejaily, and welcome Dr. Joseph Zawicki and Dr. Margaret Ashida as NYSSELA luncheon speakers. Dr. Zawicki will update our luncheon guests on the NY STEM Collaborative and Dr. Ashida will provide an update on the progress of the Empire STEM Learning Network.

Information on the 117th Annual STANYS Conference can be found at http://www.stanys.org.

Scientific American partnered with grassroots organization ScienceDebate.org earlier this summer to encourage the two main presidential candidates--Barack Obama and Mitt Romney--to answer 14 questions on some of the biggest scientific and technological challenges facing the nation. President Obama and Governor Romney have now answered these Top American Science Questions, which you can read below.
Editors will grade the candidates' answers for SA's November issue, which will be available on the iPad and in print in mid-October.

Check the questions and answers at http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=obama-romney-science-debate

Empire State STEM Learning Network launches

 “STEM You Can!” Video Contest

September 5, 2012 – The “STEM You Can!” video contest invites youth in grades 3-12 living in the nine-county Finger Lakes Region to create a short 3-minute video as part of a regional contest to let youth showcase their understanding of STEM – science, technology, engineering and math.  The goal of the contest is to challenge young people to understand why STEM is important to them and their future by engaging them in a creative media project that explores a STEM concept and demonstrate its impact on the world today and in the future. The contest, which launches this month, runs through March 1st, 2013.

               Participants may work as individuals or in teams of up to four, plus an adult mentor or advisor. Winning videos will be chosen on the basis of STEM content, clarity, and creativity. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place winners in three age-level categories and a recognition gala to showcase the winning videos is planned for late April 2013. Full details, including rules and entry forms, will be available online at http://www.empirestem-fl.org/.

Videos will be judged by a panel of business leaders and educators and the winning videos will be shown publicly via YouTube and an On-Demand channel on Time Warner Cable. Time Warner, Xerox, and Eastman Kodak Co. are among the partners sponsoring the contest sponsors. A complete list of STEM Hub Partners can be found at http://www.empirestem-fl.org/About%20Us/partners.

               “STEM is cool. It gives us astronauts, Mars rovers, biodiversity, and more,” explained Scott Knaub, regional vice president at Time Warner Cable, a co-sponsor of the initiative. “We want to advance the interdisciplinary teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Educators and business leaders have identified STEM as a way to boost our region’s economic competitiveness. We know students have a passion for technology and science. We want them to articulate those passions in video so everyone ‘gets it’ about STEM.”

ELEVENTH SCIENCE EDUCATION SUMMIT HELD AT UNION GRADUATE COLLEGE

The New York State Science Education Consortium held its eleventh annual Science Education Summit on August 21 and 22 at Union Graduate College in Schenectady, New York.  The following science education leaders participated at the Summit:

               Jackie Carrese, President, Capital Area Science Supervisors Association

               Ann Crotty, Associate in Science Education, NYS Education Department

               Connie Duff, President, NYS Science Education Leadership Association

               Steven Fielman, DAL for Intermediate Science, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Fran Hess, President-Elect, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Kathy Hoppe, DAL for Professional Development, Science Teachers Association  of NYS

               Will Jaacks, Associate in Science Education, NYS Education Department

               Mary Loesing, Past President, Long Island Science Education Leadership Association

               Ellen Mandel, President, Science Council of New York City

               Linda Padwa, Director, Biology-Chemistry Professional Development Network          

               Fred Pidgeon, Past-President, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Patricia Price, Former DAL for Colleges, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Arnie Serotsky, Director of Communications, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Mary Thomas, DAL for Elementary Science, Science Teachers Association of NYS

               Bruce Tulloch, Facilitator, NYS Science Education Consortium

               Brian Vorwald, President, Science Teachers Association of NYS

Participants initially engaged in a SWOT analysis of the state of K-12 science education in New York State, identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.  Using this analysis and additional information, working groups on State science policies and procedures, standards and curriculum, assessments, and professional development generated recommendations that will be shared with the New York State Education Department, the memberships of science education professional associations, and other stakeholders in the coming weeks.  A separate working group developed means to facilitate the distribution of the Summit’s recommendations to State science education policy makers.  The New York State Science Education Consortium was established in 2000 to periodically review State initiatives in K-12 science education and make recommendations to help ensure that reforms will result in effective science teaching and meaningful science learning. 

Watch for more information from the NYS Science Education Consortium!