AISD Educators Attend Sally Ride Science Academy

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AISD staff members Wesley, Kujawa, Charles, Rodríguez, Wertz, and Bumpus are pictured (l-r) with Truman Bell (back row, center) of ExxonMobil.

A number of Aldine ISD educators attended a Sally Ride Science Academy in July in San Diego. The Academy is designed help educators learn new, innovative strategies to raise students’ awareness of and interest in science and science careers.

The Academy is a partnership between Sally Ride Science, founded by the first American woman in space, Dr. Sally Ride, and ExxonMobil. The program educates teachers and counselors about the importance of introducing young students to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers, showcases diverse role models in those careers, and provides pathways to incorporate STEM career awareness in the classroom.

AISD district administrators selected staff members to attend the Sally Ride Science Academy based on their qualifications, dedication to inspiring students at an early age, and overall commitment to enhancing the teaching profession. The following AISD participants were among the 275 educators from around the country who attended a five-day Academy session this summer:

•    Shirley Worden, AISD program director of elementary social studies
•    Alyza Rivers Gordon, science teacher at Parker Intermediate School
•    Aydsha Kayani, science skills specialist at Hill Intermediate School
•    Dwane Willrich, science teacher at Caraway Intermediate School
•    Jessica Maddry, science teacher at Parker Intermediate School
•    Melani Bell, science teacher at Carmichael Elementary School
•    Vanessa Taylor, science teacher at Carmichael Elementary School
•    Christine Kujawa, AISD program specialist of secondary English as a Second Language (ESL)
•    Brandy Bumpus, counselor at Davis High School
•    Queenie Charles, science teacher at Drew Academy
•    Erika Rodríguez, science department chair at Aldine Middle School
•    Joshua Wertz, science teacher at Teague Middle School
•    Robert Wesley, science teacher at Plummer Middle School

Since the inaugural Academy in 2009, the Academy has trained more than 395 educators in 41 districts spanning 14 states and the District of Columbia. Those educators have since returned to their districts and trained more than 2,700 additional educators using Academy materials. Ride commented about how the Academy helps youth before she died in July at the age of 61.

“I’m thrilled to announce the selection of these fine educators,” Ride said. “Research shows that introducing young students to the wide variety of science careers available, the many paths to becoming a scientist, and the vibrant women and men working in science today makes girls and boys more likely to stay interested in science and to consider a science career. By partnering with ExxonMobil, we’re equipping educators with the necessary tools to encourage students to pursue math and science in higher education and beyond.”

The Sally Ride Science Academy is part of ExxonMobil’s investment in math and science education in the United States. ExxonMobil (www.exxonmobile.com/community) supports numerous other initiatives that encourage students to take an active interest in careers in the math and science fields; supports the professional development of highly qualified teachers and promote involvement of women and minorities students. Truman Bell, senior program officer for education and diversity at ExxonMobil, commented on why the company chose to partner with Sally Ride Science Academy.

“Programs like the Sally Ride Science Academy will help transform the perception of scientists and science-based careers and inspire young people to take up careers in these fields,” said Bell. “It’s our responsibility to ensure that every child feels inspired and competent in these subject areas to face the challenges of the future.”

The Sally Ride Science Academy utilizes a train-the-trainer model that prepares Academy graduates to train other teachers in their district. AISD staff members who attended the Sally Ride Science Academy in July strongly encourage their colleagues to attend a training session during the 2012-2013 school year.

“The Sally Ride Science Academy really stressed the importance of exposing minority and female students to careers in STEM fields,” stated Bumpus. “The techniques that I learned at the Academy will allow me to enhance students’ knowledge of careers, as well as help them become college and career ready. I also learned how to assist teachers in making STEM courses more exciting for students. The Cool Careers in Science books will be a great resource to have in our counseling center.”

“No matter how long you have been teaching, the time for change is NOW,” Rivers Gordon remarked. “The Academy helps gear teachers toward motivating students today to prepare them for the future.”

“The entire science conference was absolutely wonderful,” asserted Taylor. “One of the most important things that I like is being able to use the Cool Careers in Science books as additional resources that can be used across the curriculum. Since the language arts program is focusing more on nonfiction reading material, these books can definitely be utilized. Students will be able to read about the many different scientists in a variety of different areas of study or fields. They will realize that science is used every day all around us.”

“The Sally Ride Science Academy is the best way to get students interested in a career in the sciences,” said Wesley.

“The Academy will bring the real world of science and mathematics into your classroom,” added Wertz.

“I felt fortunate to attend the Sally Ride Science Academy,” commented Charles. “I am so excited to share the wealth of information to our teachers and students.”

“Every teacher in our district can benefit from attending the Sally Ride Science Academy training,” said Kujawa. “The training really emphasized the importance of empowering students and making them aware of the endless choices they have when selecting a career path.”

“The Sally Ride Science Academy validated for me the connections between science, math, English language arts, and social studies,” stated Worden. “The STEM careers presented will help our students, and especially females, to choose careers in science and engineering with interest and passion.”

“My students have always thought of a career in science as being a NASA engineer or an astronaut,” observed Willrich. “After attending the Sally Ride Science Academy, my students will be able to explore a number of careers that may be tailored to their interest and academic timelines.”

“Thanks to the Sally Ride Science Academy, my conversations about what you want to do when you grow up will never be the same,” stated Maddry. “I am just thrilled to show my students what I learned at the Academy about promising STEM careers of the future.”

All elementary, intermediate, middle and high school teachers can benefit from the training. This is an integrated training that reaches across all content areas. The focus of the training is not on science content, but rather on how to get students interested in STEM career choices. AISD teachers will be able to choose from three training dates: 1) October 6, 2012 at M.O. Campbell Educational Center, 2) November 3, 2012 at the Aldine Staff Development Center (ASDC) and 3) February 2, 2013 at ASDC.  A training session for middle and high school counselors will be offered September 29, 2012 at the Resource Center. Teachers and counselors interested in attending a session can register by going to Staff Development (Under “Science” for teachers; under “School Counseling” for counselors) under E-Portal in the school district’s website. All training sessions will run from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Graduates and their trainees (teachers and counselors) will receive two sets of the Sally Ride Science Cool Careers in Science book series for use in their classrooms. The books offer expository texts that introduce students to fascinating men and women working in a wide variety of STEM fields, which will, no doubt, prove to be a valuable resource for every classroom.