- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Grant to help launch ��Vlog��ýLR program for computer science teachers

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Fri, 20 May 2016 16:26:10 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will help prepare high school educators to teach computer science, thanks to a recent state grant. With the $35,335 grant from the , ��Vlog��ýLR will launch an eight-week program this summer that will provide specialized professional development opportunities for teachers. Led by ��Vlog��ýLR Computer Science Professor and Department Chair Dr. Kenji Yoshigoe, the new program will focus on computer science content delivery for high school educators. Teachers from throughout the state will attend the program, which will take place at the Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology building. The grant enables Yoshigoe and his team to host the training at no cost to attendees. ��Vlog��ýLR’s Dr. Chia-Chu Chiang, graduate assistant Suzan Anwar, and ��Vlog��ýLRTeach Master Teacher Sandra Leiterman are partnering with Yoshigoe to facilitate the program. Using activity-based lessons, the team will prepare teachers to earn their computer science teaching certification, a mandatory state requirement for individuals hoping to teach high school-level computer science content. The sessions will provide a place where otherwise unconnected computer science educators can be in a community together, learning from, sharing with, and supporting each other. As an added incentive, the teachers who attain the Arkansas Department of Education Computer Science Endorsement (or ADE provisional license in computer science) and who support the instruction of one or more of the approved ACT 187 courses for the 2016-2017 school year will receive a stipend. Pictured at top right: Dr. Kenji Yoshigoe

��Vlog��ýLR boosts science education at local schools

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Thu, 28 Apr 2016 15:29:51 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock continues to collaborate with local school districts to improve science education. The ��Vlog��ýLRTeach team — comprised of Co-directors Drs. Gail Hughes and Tony Hall; master teachers, Kelly Chaney and Sandra Leiterman; and Dr. Anne Lindsay — received a $140,000 Mathematics and Science Partnership grant, renewable for three years. Through a program called ��Vlog��ýLR K-4 Science Integration MSP, ��Vlog��ýLR educators are helping to train 30 kindergarten through fourth-grade teachers in science. The university is partnering with Little Rock School District elementary schools Bale, Booker Arts Magnet, and Pulaski Heights as well as Pulaski Academy and Little Rock Christian Academy. Through the program, ��Vlog��ýLRTeach hosted four meetings this school year, Hughes said, and will provide two weeks of intensive training in June. The focus is on engaging students in science through literacy and providing inquiry-based instruction in early grades. Team leaders plan to help students by improving teachers’ knowledge of and interest in science content as well as their understanding of the Arkansas science standards for kindergarten through fourth grade. Photos: Teachers participate in a Feb. 27 ��Vlog��ýLRTeach training, working through a lesson they can implement with their students. The lesson plan, designed by Kelly Chaney, a ��Vlog��ýLRTeach master teacher, makes use of the book by Nancy E. Shaw and Margot Apple. Contributed photos.

��Vlog��ýLR to host STEM Leadership for Girls conference

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Fri, 18 Mar 2016 18:37:28 +0000

Thanks to a grant from the Arkansas STEM Coalition, ��Vlog��ýLR will soon host its first STEM Leadership for Girls conference.

Scheduled for April 22, the conference will introduce upper high school and early college women from around the state to advanced STEM activities and career opportunities.

The $4,650 grant will allow the conference to be free for attendees.

Organized by Keith Harris, science instructional specialist for the ��Vlog��ýLR STEM Center, the all-day event will feature a panel, a poster session, and a series of hands-on workshops led by female Central Arkansas STEM professionals.

From robotics to virtual reality, these workshops will offer attendees the opportunity to engage with real-world applications of STEM concepts. The goal, Harris said, is to remove both educational and cultural barriers to the STEM world for young women.

“The conference workshops will promote interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and ultimately reduce the stereotype that these fields are mainly for males,” Harris said.

The College of Engineering and Information Technology, the College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences, and the will provide additional resources for the conference.

By introducing attendees to exciting STEM programs and research, as well as to female leaders, conference organizers hope to inspire Arkansas’s young women to join the field. Attendees will be recruited from the state’s high schools and two- and four-year colleges, with invitations being sent to high-performing, highly recommended students.

In addition to learning new STEM applications, these students will do invaluable networking at the event.

“We are currently confirming female STEM professionals who will share their passion for science, technology, and engineering,” Harris said.

“Participants will hear from their personal stories and learn how they can have an exciting future in STEM.”

Faculty from ��Vlog��ýLRTeach, the Emerging Analytics Lab, the Departments of Biology and Earth Sciences, and ��Vlog��ýMS will lead the workshops.

��Vlog��ýLRTeach positions graduating student to succeed

Shanna Fitzgerald — Wed, 16 Dec 2015 18:06:13 +0000

Jennifer Hilderbrand heard the doubters. People wondered if Hilderbrand really would earn a college degree. They weren’t shy about sharing those thoughts, either. After all, she had followed in her father’s footsteps, joining the military right out of high school. While stationed in South Carolina as a member of the Air Force, she met her future husband. Now with two young children and six years in the military that included a deployment in Iraq and a move to Arkansas for her husband’s job, some questioned whether Hilderbrand would ever get a degree. This month, she’ll give the answer. “I had so many people tell me I was not going to do it; I’m not going to do it,” Hilderbrand said. “And here I am graduating in December.” Hilderbrand, 30, of Benton, is part of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduating fall semester class that will be honored during the Saturday, Dec. 19, commencement ceremony starting at 9:30 a.m. at the Jack Stephens Center. A math major and STEM education minor, Hilderbrand has a job lined up teaching mathematics at eStem High School, where she’s already employed after serving as a student teacher. Rather than hinder her studies, Hilderbrand said her military experience gave her focus and had a positive effect on her grades. “It taught me to persevere through trying times,” Hilderbrand said. The ��Vlog��ýLRTeach program also played a critical role in her success. Kelly Chaney, who has been a master teacher for the program since it began in 2012, had a particularly strong influence on Hilderbrand. Chaney created a sense of family for Hilderbrand, a place to call home at ��Vlog��ýLR. Although Chaney was her professor, she also was a mentor and adviser. She almost became a “mother figure” for Hilderbrand, who didn’t have deep ties to Arkansas or ��Vlog��ýLR. “I don’t think I would have stayed if it weren’t for her,” Hilderbrand said. The ��Vlog��ýLRTeach program, which is designed to strengthen STEM education in the state, was like its own community, Hilderbrand said. There were numerous collaborations, as math and science majors worked together in core and and minor courses. Hilderbrand, who served as president of Pi Sigma, said she made numerous lifelong friends through ��Vlog��ýLRTeach. “It was a family,” Hilderbrand said. “It made it feel like home.” “I met a lot of good people, and I don’t think I would trade it for anything.” Hilderbrand will be licensed to teach seventh- through 12th-grade math courses, and although she’s graduating and has a post-graduation job, she expects to return to the ��Vlog��ýLR campus soon. eStem announced plans to move its high school to the ��Vlog��ýLR campus, starting in 2017. “I find it interesting that I can’t quite get away from ��Vlog��ýLR,” Hilderbrand joked. “I think it’ll be great for our students here.” Hilderbrand is getting the degree. She has the job. And thanks to her time at ��Vlog��ýLR and the ��Vlog��ýLRTeach program, she found friends she plans to stay in touch with the rest of her life. “I can’t be more blessed.”

STEM teaching scholarship deadline is Nov. 16

Shanna Fitzgerald — Thu, 05 Nov 2015 20:05:32 +0000

Scholarships are available to University of Arkansas at Little Rock juniors and seniors who are enrolled in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics degree program and are interested in pursuing a related teaching license. Recipients of the new ��Vlog��ýLRTeach Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program awards will receive a $5,000 scholarship for the spring 2016 semester. The deadline for applying is Nov. 16. For more information and for details about how to apply, click here. ��Vlog��ýLRTeach, a STEM secondary education teacher preparation initiative, offers the scholarships thanks to a nearly $1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation that was announced this year. The program is a collaboration of ��Vlog��ýLR, Henderson Middle School, ��Vlog��ýLR Children International, and the Museum of Discovery. It uses a multi-pronged approach to tackling the state’s shortage of science and mathematics teachers, particularly in high-need schools.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Grant to help launch ����Vlog��ýLR program for computer science teachers

����Vlog��ýLR boosts science education at local schools