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Minneapolis at a Glance

Click here for ideas about where to find funding. Don't forget to apply for funding early.

Exhibiting, Sponsorship, and Advertising Opportunities in Minneapolis

Don't forget that the application deadline will be here before you know it. Apply today at www.iteea.org/Awards/
awards.htm.

ITEEA is pleased to present its three new corporate members, Stratasys, Teacher Geek, and WhiteBox Learning and new Institutional Member, Best Robotics.

 
Stratasys, Inc. is the worldwide leader in producing additive manufacturing systems using patented FDM® (Fused Deposition Modeling) technology to build real parts directly from 3D CAD files. Its Dimension® 3D printers are affordable, networked printers, which enable students to bring CAD files and design ideas to life in durable plastic right from their desktop. Dimension 3D printers allow users to evaluate design concepts and test models for functionality, form, and fit.

FortusTM 3D Production Systems, also a brand of Stratasys, offers more versatility and capability using sophisticated technology, the largest build envelope and maximum throughput of any additive manufacturing system.

 
TeacherGeek is a manufacturer and retailer of extraordinary, affordable activities and components. TeacherGeek products allow students to design and build innovative wind turbines, hydraulic arms, vehicles, generators, pumps, transmissions, and almost anything else you can imagine. TeacherGeek bugs are one of the most popular electronics activities in the world. TeacherGeek components can be combined with other resources and used anywhere from classrooms to manufacturing labs.

 
WhiteBox Learning: STEM-Intensive, web-based, standards-based, 3D Virtual Modeling and Simulation learning applications that bring all four letters of STEM to life at once. Real engineering for Middle and High School Technology Education classes. STEM-intensive learning that is competitive, fun, and transferable.

 
Best Robotics stands for
Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology (www.bestinc.org). Our mission: to engage, excite, and inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science, and technology through participation in a sports-like science and engineering-based robotics competition. For more information about BEST, contact:

Dr. George Blanks
Executive Director, BEST Robotics, at blankgw@eng.auburn.edu
or 334-703-0077.

Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowships Announced

ITEEA Member Selected for Distinguished Fellowship at the National Science Foundation’s Lifelong Learning Cluster

The Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education announced on September 1 the selection of ITEEA member Terrie Rust, a Technology and Career Exploration teacher of Grades 5-8 at Oasis Elementary School, Peoria, Arizona, as a 2010-11 Einstein Fellow. The prestigious Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program offers elementary and secondary science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) teachers with a demonstrated excellence in teaching an opportunity to serve in the national education or public policy arenas. One of 32 teachers serving this year, Terrie was carefully selected from a nationwide pool of applicants.

An 18-year teaching veteran, Terrie has been nationally recognized for her work in building the Technology, Life, Careers program for the elementary schools in her district. The program was cited for excellence by the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA) in March 2010. Rust says, "My personal teaching philosophy is founded on my view of teaching as a public trust. I take my responsibilities seriously and know that I owe my students no less than my best effort.” Her enthusiasm for technology led to the creation of the Girls Exploring Technology (G.E.T.) club at her school, the subject of Rust’s article in the Fall 2006 issue of Illinois Journal of Technology Education entitled “Girls Exploring Technology: A Program to Involve Girls in Underserved Careers." Rust earned the Visible Difference Award from the Arizona Association of Career and Technical Education in 2007 for her work with G.E.T.

More About The Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program:
The Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program was authorized by an act of Congress in 1994. The program is administered by the U.S. Department of Energy and is coordinated by Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education. Selected teachers spend a school year in the Washington, DC metro area, serving in a Congressional Office or a Federal agency. Fellows provide practical insights and real-world perspective to policy makers and program managers developing or managing education programs. The fellowships increase understanding, communication, and cooperation between the science, technology, and mathematics education community and legislative and executive branches of the Federal government.

For more information about the Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program, please visit www.trianglecoalition.org/ein.htm.

To follow Terrie’s experiences, check the ITEEA website at: www.iteea.org/Membership/mom.htm

News From ITEEA's Children's Council

J.B. Watkins Elementary School, located in Chesterfield County, Virginia was recently selected as the 2010 Virginia Technology Education Association (VTEA) Program Excellence winner. Elizabeth Kirk, a teacher at Woolridge Elementary School in Chesterfield County, Virginia was the recipient of the 2010 VTEA Teacher of the Year. Both will be honored at the upcoming ITEEA conference in Minneapolis, MN.

Cindy Jones, the president of the Children’s Council of ITEEA, spent part of her summer interacting with astronauts at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. This opportunity was a result of winning a grant through a Chesterfield County Foundation. (Pictured at left.) Cindy also has several opportunities to spread the merits of integrating STEM as she serves as a panelist in Washington, DC in October at the Invitational Technology Summit. In addition, she will participate in the World Mod-Sim Conference in Hampton, Virginia on October 13-15, representing Children’s Engineering.

Robert Claymier, Vice President for Program with the Children’s Council is teaching a children’s engineering graduate level course for in-service elementary teachers this winter through The Ohio State University. Robert also presents at the state science and educational technology conferences on behalf of children’s engineering.

Design Squad Seeks Feedback

PBS’s Design Squad is seeking quotes and photos from teachers using Design Squad in their classrooms. Your submission may be selected for use in a series of articles to be published in ITEEA’s Technology and Engineering Teacher journal. All submissions are welcome! The Design Squad team is particularly interested in hearing positive experiences from teachers and seeing photos of students engaged in the following activities:

• Kick Stick
• On Target
• Helping Hand
• Harmless Holder
• Sky Glider

Email your submissions to margot.sigur@wgbh.org (Please put “ITEEA” and “Design Squad” in the subject line of the email.) Or post them to Facebook at: www.facebook.com/pages/Design-Squad/#!/pages/Design-Squad/62328461927?ref=ts (You’ll have to become a fan first!)

We look forward to finding out more about your experiences with Design Squad!

From ITEEA's Facebook Page

The beginning of the school year is a great time to explore the challenges and exciting opportunities from NASA for educators and students. The agency offers a variety of student and teacher opportunities, printed educational products, multimedia, and assorted other materials and websites related to NASA's educational programs. NASA resources give educators the opportunity to learn about careers, science, technology, and how their students can be among NASA's future team of scientists and engineers.
www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/blast-back-to-school-2010.html

NASA Announces High School Competition for Future Engineers: Teams to Design Software for Small Satellites on the International Space Station
www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/aug/HQ_10-198_SPHERES_Competition.html

ITEEA Institutional Member, SUNY Oswego, has been awarded a $200,000 NSF catalyst grant to assess the status of women faculty in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
www.oswego.edu/news/index.php/site/news_story/stem_study

Discovery Education Classroom Resources:
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/

Teachers pay Teachers Presents 10 Free Downloads:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs075/1102126629145/archive/1103659048761.html

Dimension's "Extreme Redesign" Global Design and 3D Printing Contest is Now Open

Calling all engineering, design, and manufacturing students: Dimension 3D Printers, a division of ITEEA Corporate Member, Stratasys, has once again launched its Extreme Redesign contest.

We're looking for CAD students worldwide to submit their most creative, useful, and innovative Extreme Redesigns. Whether it's a new perspective on an everyday product or a fresh vision for a piece of art, animation, or architecture, Dimension will award student scholarships based on the design's creativity, usefulness, part integrity, and aesthetics.

Contest Overview
Categories are:

• Middle/High School Engineering
• College Engineering
• Art & Architecture (college and middle/high school)

Prizes for Each Category:

• 1st place: $2500 scholarship
• 2nd and 3rd place: $1000 scholarship
• Semi-finalists: $50 gift card
• All finalists get a 3D model of their design
• Instructors of the 1st place winners get a laptop
• Everyone who enters gets a t-shirt

Bonus Categories and Prizes
The best entry in each bonus category gets a $250 gift card!

• Best puzzle/game design
• Best redesign of a famous building or structure

The deadline for submissions is January 31, 2011. For complete contest rules or to request a complimentary poster, go to www.dimensionprinting.com/ExtremeRedesign

Best Robotics Competition Gearing Up for 2011 Program Growth

Increased interest in robotics education and partnership with VEX Robotics sparks national and international interest in competition

BEST (“Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology”) Middle and High School Robotics Competition has announced it will host three two-day training workshops in November and December for groups interested in starting a BEST “hub” (licensed, local competition host site).

Citing an increased interest in robotics education across the U.S. and Canada and its multiyear partnership with VEX Robotics, the leading manufacturer of robotics competition equipment, BEST is experiencing unprecedented interest in its free, school-based program. Also fueling interest in BEST is the urgency expressed by government, education, and industry to increase interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers among middle and high school students.

BEST hosts its annual two-day training workshops for community colleges, universities, professional engineering and technology organizations, industries, or groups of individuals interested in joining the organization. The workshops are held at each of BEST’s three regional championship sites: Auburn University (November 19); the University of North Texas (November 19); and the University of Arkansas—Fort Smith (December 10). Visit www.bestinc.org to learn more about BEST and get detailed workshop information.

About BEST Robotics, Inc.
BEST Robotics (www.bestinc.org) is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization whose mission is to engage, excite, and inspire middle and high school students to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers through participation in a sports-like, six-week-long robotics competition. Started in 1993 as a competition for 14 area schools in rural North Texas, BEST has become the largest school-based robotics competition in the U.S. and the only one free to schools. This fall, over 850 schools, 12,500 students, and 4,500 volunteers are participating at 39 licensed competition sites in 15 states. Over 40 community colleges, technical schools, and universities are actively involved in the program each year.

National WomenTech Educators Workshop to Take Place October 14-15, 2010

Join Donna Milgram, Executive Director of the Institute for Women in Technology, Trades & Science (IWITTS), for a two-day National WomenTech Educators Train-the-Trainer Workshop in Emeryville, CA, just across the bay from San Francisco. Learn best practices for how to recruit and retain women and girls in the technology classroom, and how to teach these strategies to others. The workshop is suited for technology instructors, school administrators, counselors, school-to-career, tech-prep, and equity coordinators.

3 for 2 Special – Save $600: Sign up three people from the same organization, and the third person attends for free! (Offer expires 10/1). Visit www.iwitts.org/workshop for details.

NASA News

• NASA Endeavor STEM Certificates K-12
The NASA Endeavor Science Teaching Certificate Project awards one-year fellowships each year to over 40 current and prospective teachers. Funding authorization for the Project is provided through the NASA Endeavor Teacher Fellowship Trust Fund as a tribute to the dedicated crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger.

In addition to competitive Fellowships, school districts and others are eligible to sponsor teachers to learn alongside NASA-sponsored Endeavor Fellows.

The Project is administered by U.S. Satellite Laboratory, Inc. and partnered with various State Departments of Education. Endeavor Fellows receive award-winning STEM Professional Development, taking graduate courses in an innovative, LIVE (online) format from the comfort of their home or school. They learn to apply research-based pedagogical strategies and cutting-edge STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) content to their classroom contexts while becoming a part of a special network of like-minded educators across the Nation.

Endeavor Fellows will be awarded a NASA Endeavor Certificate in STEM Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. In addition, fifteen (15) graduate credits are awarded from other regionally-accredited partners in higher education.

Applications are due October 15. Additional information is available at www.us-satellite.net/nasa/endeavor.

• 2010 Cassini Scientist for a Day Essay Contest
The Cassini Scientist for a Day essay contest challenges students to become NASA scientists studying Saturn. Participants examine three target images taken by Cassini and choose the one that they think will yield the best scientific results. This choice is then explained in a 500-word essay. The contest is open to all students from Grades 5-12, working alone or in groups of up to four students. The essays will be divided into three groups: Grades 5-6, 7-8, and 9-12. All submissions must be students' original work. Each student can submit only one entry. The deadline for 2010 essay contest submissions is noon Pacific time (3 p.m. EDT) on October 27, 2010. For more information, visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/education/scientistforaday9thedition/. If you have questions about this contest, please email your inquiries to scientistforaday@jpl.nasa.gov.