Fourth annual conference featured STEM programs and collaborations across Minnesota
The fourth annual conference of the Minnesota STEM Network took place on Wednesday, May 15th at St. Catherine University in St. Paul. Our keynote speaker
was Dr. Linda Rosen, Chief Executive Officer of Change the Equation in Washington DC. Change the Equation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, CEO-led initiative that is mobilizing the business community to improve the quality of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning in the United States. Dr. Rosen also presented a breakout session on STEMWorks, an initiative within Change the Equation to review programs against criteria for effectiveness. This breakout session was one of more than 30 breakout sessions. The McGlynn Technology Center presented a live webcast of Dr. Rosen’s keynote and 20 of the breakout sessions. See the Network page for more information on the conference.
Policymaker Briefing celebrates SciMathMN 20th Anniversary with guest speaker, Stephen Pruitt
SciMathMN brought together stakeholders in STEM education in Minnesota for the 2013 policymaker briefing on February 21st at the Minnesota History Center. The guest speaker was Stephen Pruitt, Ph.D., Vice President for Content, Research and Development at Achieve, Inc.
Dr. Pruitt’s comments focused on the role of college and career readiness in state math and science standards. Achieve, Inc. is leading 26 states, including Minnesota, in developing the Next Generation Science Standards and developing assessments for common core mathematics standards.
Dr. Pruitt also addressed a joint session of the Minnesota House and Senate Education committees at the Capitol concerning college and career readiness in STEM.
The policymaker briefing was sponsored by 3M.
SciMathMN Collaborates with Humphrey School of Public Affairs to Engage Peter Lindstrom as New Executive Director
MINNEAPOLIS, MN (September 20, 2012) – The Board of Directors of SciMathMN, the statewide coalition that advocates for quality K-12 STEM education, announced today the hiring of Peter Lindstrom as the organization’s next executive director.
Lindstrom will continue to serve at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs where he is the assistant director of the Center for Science, Technology & Public Policy and fulfill his new duties with SciMathMN on a contract basis. He brings more than 15 years of experience in public policy advocacy, communication, marketing and event management. He previously served as vice president of public affairs at the Minnesota High Tech Association.
“Peter joins us at a pivotal moment in the history of SciMathMN.” said Richard Hudson, Chair of the SciMathMN Board of Directors and Director of Science Production at tpt, Twin Cities Public Television, “Peter will help accelerate the growth of our important new initiative, the Minnesota STEM Network, while sustaining the service SciMathMN has always provided to advancing STEM education in Minnesota.”
“We’re thrilled with this unique partnership,” said Eric Schwartz, dean of the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. “Collaborating with SciMathMN integrates scholarship, service and outreach which are key elements to our mission.”
Two key initiatives of SciMathMN include the Minnesota STEM Network and the award-winning STEM Teacher Center website that houses the Minnesota Mathematics and Science Frameworks.
STEM Teacher Center Given Dot Org Award
The STEM Teacher Center website that houses the Minnesota Mathematics and Science Frameworks has been awarded the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits’ 2012 Dot Org Award for most Innovative Program Delivery. The award is officially announced on the MCN website and was presented to SciMathMN and the Minnesota Department of Education at their annual Nonprofit Technology and Communications Conference on March 16th. The STEM Teacher Center includes over 300 frameworks for delivering Minnesota’s K-12 mathematics and science standards, as well as a host of other resources for K-12 STEM education. Check out our award-winning site!
Succeeding in Math & Science: A New Tool for Teaching STEM Airs on Public Television
SciMathMN has partnered with Twin Cities Public Television (TPT) to capture the story about the need for and development of math and science Frameworks for MN. The 30 minute program, which first aired January 8th on public television, includes rationale regarding the need for a STEM resource such as the Frameworks (captured t the June SciMathMN Policymaker Briefing and STEM Best of the Best display), as well as information about the final website tool used to distribute the Frameworks (captured through a number of interviews).
This program should have appeal to a broad audience, including potential use as a staff development tool. Please pass this information along to any that you think would be interested or would benefit from it.
For information on upcoming broadcasts and quick access to online viewing, visit the program’s unique program page. This is an excellent link to share!
Minnesota STEM Teacher Center Launched June 30, 2011
In partnership with the MN Department of Education, SciMathMN has been coordinating an effort involving over 170 teachers and curriculum experts in the writing of Frameworks for Minnesota’s math and science standards. We believe the Frameworks will be critical components in moving Minnesota’s world-class standards to become world-class practice in Minnesota classrooms. The Frameworks provide supporting information and resources for each of the math and science standards, including:
- An Overview of the standard including Correlations to other standards
- Student Misconceptions
- A Vignette of that standard being delivered in the classroom
- Resources and new vocabulary
- Sample Assessment items
- Differentiation for the range of students in the classroom
- Suggestions for Administrators and Parents
Bookmark www.scimathmn.org/stemtc to have this resource close at hand!
Please note: The MN STEM Teacher Center opened to the public on June 30, 2011. However, we are still reviewing and finalizing the content. We appreciate your patience with us during this process and welcome your suggestions. We hope you like what you find here and will become a regular visitor.
SciMathMN Awarded $179K Strategic Planning Grant from Boston Scientific for the Minnesota STEM Network
SciMathMN last week announced the receipt of a strategic planning grant in the amount of $179,000 from Boston Scientific to support the Minnesota STEM Network, an initiative of SciMathMN. The announcement took place during the second annual meeting of the Minnesota STEM Network on April 21, 2011.
Read the full press release.
SciMathMN Launches K12 STEM BIZCONNECT Adopt-A-School Initiative
SciMathMN, with the support of HB Fuller, hosted an Adopt- A-School pilot kickoff meeting on May 12, 2011. Participants representing business, education (K-12/higher ed), non profits, and policymakers discussed ways to advance STEM engagement through community partnerships.
An initial draft of the K12 STEM BIZCONNECT Toolkit was shared with attendees. The toolkit serves as a sample guide to partnership formation and outlines a variety of program examples.
Pilot participants will review the contents of the toolkit and assist with future content revisions so the guide becomes a continuously evolving document authored by many contributors. In the future, SciMathMN plans to initiate a web-portal where partnerships can showcase their programs.
For more information on the K12 STEM BIZCONNECT Adopt-A-School pilot program, please contact Sally Standiford.
Minnesota STEM Network Annual Meeting – Gathering Highlights Progress of the Organization
The second-annual Minnesota STEM Network year-end meeting was held on April 21, 2011 at Boston Scientific at the Maple Grove campus. The meeting, attended by over 160 STEM teaching professionals, informal STEM organizations, community leaders, and business representatives, was held at Boston Scientific. Attendees participated in a variety of keynote and breakout sessions. Feedback sessions gave participants a chance to offer recommendations on the next phase of the Minnesota STEM Network and ways to extend the reach of the organization. Sen. Al Franken discussed new legislation that would establish a STEM Master Teacher Corps for top STEM K-12 teachers. Organizers provided a recap of this year’s Network activities and outlined goals for the coming year that will include the creation of a formal strategic plan.
4th Annual TIMSS Policymaker Briefing
Featured Speakers: Dr. William H. Schmidt,
Distinguished Professor and Internationally Recognized Education Researcher and Natalie Rasmussen, Minneapolis North Community High School
This briefing was held on February 12, 2010 and featured new TIMSS information regarding the status of Science at grades 4 and 8 in Minnesota as well as the achievement gap in both math and science. The analysis showed a very strong link between poverty (as measured by Free/Reduced Price Lunch status) and low achievement. This topic will be the focus of further analysis and potential solution proposals as our work progresses.
Download Dr. Schmidt’s February 12, 2010 presentation in ppt or pdf format.
SciMathMN would like to recognize 3M as the primary sponsor of this event.
Note: The presentation slides and final report from the Oct. 21 event are available from our publications page.
Calculated Success DVD’s Available
Twin Cities Public Television (TPT) has partnered with SciMathMN to produce a 30 minute documentary program about the importance of STEM (Science, Technology Education, Engineering and Mathematics) education in Minnesota and the role that the TIMSS international math and science test has played in documenting our progress in STEM.
The program, titled Calculated Success, features interviews of science and math experts discussing the importance of STEM education and includes discussion of the TIMSS testing analysis that Dr. William Schmidt and the research team at Michigan State University performed. Local experts include Dr. Alex Cirillo (Vice President of Community Affairs for 3M), Brad Meeks (Superintendent of Farmington Public Schools), Nancy Nutting (former Executive Director of SciMathMN), Troy Vincent (Farnsworth Aerospace Elementary Principal), Karen Klinzing (Assistant Commissioner, MN Dept. of Ed.) and others. Calculated Success DVD’s are free to Friends of SciMathMN or are available for a cost of $10 and may be obtained by contacting: info@scimathmn.org
For information on upcoming broadcasts and quick access to online viewing, visit the program’s unique program page. This is an excellent link to share!
Major funding of this project was provided by 3M with additional funding from Cargill and ADC.
SciMathMN gratefully acknowledges the financial support from the following foundations to enable SciMathMN to develop and maintain its website and create stronger public awareness of STEM education and workforce issues: