Noyce Scholars and mentors gather and present at the National Science Teachers Association conference

Dr. Steve Lindaas, Physics and Astronomy, and Dr. Alison Wallace, Biosciences, attended the National Science Teachers Association conference in Minneapolis last week with seven MSUM graduates currently teaching middle and high school science, including Isaac Skalsky, physics and chemistry education; Erick Hernandez, physics education; and Katie Olson, Jake Pundsack, Anneliese Johnson, Briana Kowalke, and Whitney Shegrud, all life science education majors. Each of these teachers are Noyce Scholars, meaning they were recipients of a full tuition scholarship from the National Science Foundation during their time at MSUM, and continue to be mentored up to eight years following their graduation as they fulfill a commitment to teach in high needs public schools. Dr. Steve Lindaas and Isaac Skalsky presented a hands-on session called “Resonating with Sound!” to an enthusiastic standing room only crowd.  The culmination of their session resulted in breaking a glass plate with sound.  Anneliese Johnson presented three sessions and a poster: “Building a Curious Classroom: Prerequisite for Effective Inquiry Based Learning”, “Assessment Modification: How to Differentiate Without Altering Student Expectations”, “Engineering in the High School Science Classroom”, and “Integrating Ecology Topics: Aleutian Island Archipelago and Serengeti National Park as Case Studies”. The MSUM Noyce program continues to provide opportunities for graduate alumni to become leaders in their schools and communities.  The first image is of Anneliese, Dr. Wallace, Katie, and Jake and the second image shows Katie, Isaac, Anneliese, Jake and Briana.