The following district directors have submitted news items for NCSTA members:

• District 1
• District 3
• District 5
• District 6
• District 8

Not sure which district you are in? Check out the district map at the bottom of this page.
Have news to share? Email your District Director!

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News From District 1
Director: Colleen Karl

What a year! I hear that District 1 will be in strong attendance at the NCSTA Professional Development Institute on November 13th and 14th in Greensboro, NC. If you have not yet registered for the conference, find our web registration form and do not delay. The summer must have been very rewarding for many of you as the opportunities for enrichment are getting better each year. I just received a message from Dr. Rhea Miles at ECU who is planning for next summer’s activities. You or your students may want to participate in this session – the details are below:

• The East Carolina Reach Up Program is a science enrichment program for Afro-American Middle school students (grades 6-8). The Program will focus on specific goals with designed activities to: (1) develop student self esteem, (2) connect science to student experiences, and (3) encourage and motivate students to want to seek employment where job prospects exist. The Program is free to all participants and will take place on June 14-18th and June 21-25, 2004.
• The East Carolina Reach Up Program is currently in search of a summer coordinator. The job responsibilities are specific for this position with appropriate salary. If this sounds interesting to you, contact Rhea Miles, Ph.D. at East Carolina for more details (252-328-1604 (work) or milesr@mail.ecu.edu. Now!

Program opportunities from the Center for Science, Mathematics and Technology at East Carolina University are found at the new website for the Center is http://www.soe.ecu.edu/csmte/. I think you will find an experience on this site to satisfy that quest for learning that characterizes excellent teachers. The Science House at NCSU also has great professional development opportunities for your needs – see http://www.science-house.org/workshops/ or give Scott Ragan a call at the Science House to tailor workshops to the focus of a larger group. GIS workshops and Science Safety workshops are coming up within the next month – registration is almost filled for these.

District One was involved this past summer with many activities – the Bennett’s Millpond Summer Academy welcomed our new students and our returning students for a week of intensive training at the pond. The Millpond teams are from Chowan, Gates, Perquimans and Bertie counties. The students and teachers received special instruction from soil experts, GPS specialists, GIS specialists, wildlife personnel and technical instruction for the array of sampling equipment. A local journalist joined the Summer Academy for a special early morning sunrise on the Millpond canoe trip. We all had a chance to reflectively write about our encounters with the resident blue herons at dawn. Watch our progress and get some great classroom ideas at http://www.science-house.org/student/hhmi/millpond/.

Think big, think small, and remember that science education is for all – spread the word. Hope to see all of you at the NCSTA Professional Development Institute.
Best wishes for a successful 2003-2004 school year!

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News From District 3
Director: Manley Midgett

Please check and see if your school has a “Point of Contact” for the “Building a Presence for Science Program” that is sponsored by the National Science Teachers’ Association and ExxonMobil. If your school does not have a “PoC” or if the person who wants to serve in this position has changed, please send me the name of the science teacher who will serve in this position. My email address is midgettm@meredith.edu and I will also need the person’s phone number, email address, and school name. This is a great opportunity and every school should have a contact person for this program. To find out more information about this program link to http://ecommerce.nsta.org/bap/ on the internet.

The Central Regional Science Fair will be help at the Centennial Campus Middle School in Raleigh on Saturday, March, 27, 2004. Please contact Laura Bottomley ,at NC State, by calling 919-515-2315 or email her at bottomley@nc.rr.com for more information about entering the Region 3 Science Fair. Visit www.engr.ncsu.edu/k12outreach for more information about the science fair.

Most schools in the NCSTA District #3 should register for the Regional Science Olympiad to be held at Garner High School on Saturday, February, 7, 2004. Mike Tally, in Wake County, will serve as the Regional Director of this Science Olympiad. Schools in the northeastern part of District #3 should attend the Science Olympiad at Chowan College on Feb. 21, 2004. Dr. Garth Faile, at Chowan, will direct that competition. Schools from counties on the eastern side of the district should attend the competition at East Carolina University on March 6, 2004. For a map of the entire state and registration information and much more, link to www.tx.ncsu.edu/science_olympiad/ at NC State University. Teams that qualify from the regional tournaments will compete at the NC State Science Olympiad at the College of Textiles on the NC State University campus on April 23-24, 2004.

Teachers who are “new” to the Science Olympiad and who would like to attend a summer workshop, along with some of their students should contact Jason Painter at painterj@mail.unc.edu or call 919-962-9365. He has written and been awarded at grant from the Burroughs-Welcome Foundation to provide a Science Olympiad Summer Enrichment Program (SOSEP) for students and teachers across the state. This summer, teachers from several schools in District #3 attended the SOSEP Workshop at Nash Community College. Participants got a kit worth over $500, stipends, and their registration to Science Olympiad paid for this year. Please call Jason to get involved for next year.

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News From District 5
Director: Darlene Ryan

Region 5 is very proud of Pat Shane, CMSE Associate Director and Clinical Associate Professor of Education, upon her election as President-Elect of NSELA (National Science Education Leadership Association). She is a past President of both the NC Science Teachers Association and the NC Science Leadership Association and has served in many capacities with the National Science Teachers Association. Thank you, Pat, for your continued dedication to science in our state and country!

CMSE and the North Carolina Science Olympiad (NCSO) have received a grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund to implement a three-year project called the Science Olympiad Student Enrichment Program (SOSEP). The goal of the grant is to open the doors for more minority participation in Science Olympiad.

SciWorks in Winston-Salem has opened a new exhibit delving into the science of human body function. There are many interactive components of this new exhibit which will excite all students.

Randolph County Schools has a new Math/Science Lead Teacher, Patricia Underwood. We welcome her to this new leadership position.

Alamance-Burlington, Chatham, and Orange County Schools are participating in a project called TASC (Teachers and Scientists Collaborating). TASC is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by GlaxoSmithKline. Districts commit to the TASC program for a year unless they choose a longer commitment. Through this project, teachers are provided staff development (substitute paid) on the use of NSF approved science kits and delivery of science kits to use for a seven-week period. Scientists support classroom implementation through phone conversations and email.

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News From District 6
Director: Sarah Smith

Discovering The World Through GIS - Held on the campus of University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

GIS Day is a global event for thousands of users of GIS tecnology to educate millions of chlidren and adults about how geogrpahy makes a difference in our lives through the technology of GIS and to demonstrate GIS technology at schools and organizaitns around the world.
UNC Charlotte GIS Day Activities
Date: November 19, 2002
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Register: http://www.uncc.edu/gisday

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News From District 8
Director: Kyle Carver

Update on Federal Grant to Clearmont Elementary School in Yancey County: We reported in this spring edition of the Reflector that Clearmont Elementary School in Yancey County received a Federal Grant of 1.35 million dollars over three years. Mrs. Kay Ball, the lead writer of the grant, reported that the money spent so far has allowed the school a portable smart board, visual presenter and data projector for grades K-2 and the following has been installed for grades
3, 4, 5: Smart boards, Em panels, Visual presenters, Ceiling mount data projectors. All teachers have Dell laptops and Palm Zire 71s for take home use. There is a mobile lab with 25 Dell computers with wireless connectivity for school or home checkout. Their computer lab has been updated and they have online software which students can access from home, allowing students at all grade levels to work on computer objectives addressed in the NC Standard Course of Study. Nineteen teachers and administrators attended the National Educators Computing Conference in Seattle, Washington this summer, where they won an additional $14,000 worth of equipment. Teachers are currently working on projects to present at the technology conference in Greensboro this fall. They are also holding parent tech nights to train parents to use and take care of checkout laptops. Thanks to Principal Pete Peterson, Kay Ball and other staff members this rural school is truly in the 21st century.

Kyle Carver, an Erwin Middle School 8th grade Science teacher hopes to enrich his classes by using gnomon records he collected this summer. On June 21st he was able to do a gnomon record in Cozumel, Mexico, the 21st parallel. He took a second one on July 4th in Nenana, Alaska, the 64th parallel. He feels that comparing these records should heighten his students‚ interest in his earth science.

Judy Beck, coordinator of Western North Carolina Regional Science Olympiad Competition, is excited about the upcoming events. The Regional Competition will be held at UNCA on February 14, 2004. If your school has not participated before, there are funds available for training coaches. For further information, contact Mrs. Beck at JBeck@unca.edu.

The Science teachers in the Asheville-Buncombe County area are thankful to have Beth Snoke as a resource. The teachers who were able to attend her Teacher Pioneers workshop this summer came away very excited about what they had learned. If she can assist you in your classroom, you may contact Beth at beth_snoke@ncsu.edu.

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