Linking Leaders X States Announced

Congratulations to California and Missouri for being selected to participate in this next round of Linking Leaders. Linking Leaders X was very competitive as we had applications from more states than we have had in recent years. This is an ongoing program and we encourage those states that were not selected to please apply again next year.

About the Linking Leaders Program
Linking Leaders for Systemic Improvement (Linking Leaders) is a three-year program co-sponsored by NASSMC and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Initiated in 1996 to support NASA's Implementation Plan for Education and to promote coalition-building work in the states, the program's primary goals are [a] to provide resources and opportunities for state-level leadership groups to collaborate with NASA and its affiliates to align NASA resources with the state's science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education agenda and to build stronger links between NASA and the state's business, education and public policy communities; and [b] to build the commitment to establish and strengthen a broad-based coalition to address the state's STEM education needs over the long-term.

Call for Ideas: Title I/Math Collaborative Effort to Improve Mathematics in Title I Programs

In an effort to address the need to improve mathematics education and instruction in Title I programs, the U.S. Department of Education is in the process of developing a strategic plan that will improve mathematics learning in high-poverty, low-performing schools. The offices charged with spearheading this effort are the Title I program office and the Mathematics and Science Partnerships program office. This effort is operating on three basic assumptions:

• Teachers cannot teach what they do not understand;
• Students cannot learn what they have not been taught; and
• Students cannot be successful on state assessment exams when available curricular materials are not aligned to state assessment exams with high-level cognitive demands.

Ideas and comments are welcomed. For more information please contact Melanie Kadlic (Melanie.kadlic@ed.gov, 202-260-3793) or Pilla Parker (pilla.parker@ed.gov, 202-260-3710).

A final draft of the strategic plan will be available to the public in September 2005.

EcoLibrary

Founded by Dan L. Perlman, EcoLibrary is a source for free educational materials on ecology, conservation, and the environment. Its goal is to help people of all ages, especially teachers and students, learn more about the world in which we live. All EcoLibrary materials are available for free download and use, as long as they are used for noncommercial educational purposes.

EcoLibrary is being built in partnership with Discover Life and currently contains a database of several hundred images with associated text. In the near future EcoLibrary plans to add case studies, maps, curriculum ideas, lesson plans, and interactive teaching materials.

To learn more and access resources visit ecolibrary.org/

NASSMC is using EcoLibrary images in its homepage movie. To see the images in detail, visit www.nassmc.org/images.html

NSRC National Business and Foundation Coalition

The National Science Resources Center (NSRC) is developing a NSRC Business and Foundation Coalition to leverage its member expertise and commitment to science for all students. The idea is to increase and sustain the number of school districts implementing research-based K-12 science education programs in the United States.

Presenters and participants at the National Business and Foundation Coalition planning meeting at The Keck Center of the National Academies on May 19 included NSRC, NASSMC, North Carolina Science, Math and Technology Center, Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation, Michelin North America, DuPont and the Smithsonian Board among others.

The National Science Resources Center's mission is to improve the learning and teaching of science in school districts in the United States and throughout the world. The NSRC employs strategies that are informed by research, incorporate best practices, and leverage change through the development of strategic partnerships. The NSRC was formed by the Smithsonian Institution and the National Academies in 1985.

To learn more visit www.nsrconline.org/. NASSMC Executive Director Jim McMurtray attended the meeting.

ITAA Education Forum and Special Interest Group Inauguration Event

The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) held an ITAA Education Forum and SIG Inaugural Event on Thursday, May 12 in Arlington, VA. Presenters included the Bechtel Group, CACI, Microsoft Corporation, Nortel and the National Association of Workforce Boards among others.

ITAA has created a new Special Interest Group (SIG) program focused exclusively on educational institutions (two and four-year colleges/universities) and Workforce Investment Boards (WIB). The SIG is designed to bridge the understanding gap between the academic and employer communities on timely and relevant information technology education and training, providing ongoing opportunities for SIG members to engage with ITAA member companies.

For more information visit www.itaa.org, Programs at ITAA, Workforce & Education. NASSMC Program Officer Jessica Venable attended the meeting.

Technology Counts 2005: Electronic Transfer: Moving Technology Dollars in New Directions

The 2005 Technology Counts special issue takes an in-depth look at technology financing and spending at the federal, state and local levels in K-12 education. The report examines how much money is being spent in major technology categories as well as the effects of No Child Left Behind, E-rate, grant funding and district programs on technology spending. New this year, Technology Counts also ranks the states based on technological factors such as student to computer ratio and Internet connectivity.

State data tables examine how states fare on access, capacity, and use of technology and include Technology Leaders (Ranking the States), Access to Technology, Capacity to Use Technology, and Use of Technology.

NASA Announces 2005 Explorer Schools, Summer Sustainability Conference and International Expansion

2005 NASA Explorer Schools
NASA has selected 50 new 2005 Explorer Schools. Ninety-eight percent of the 2005 class is in high poverty areas; 82 percent in predominantly minority communities; 19 in Hispanic communities. To see the lists of 2003, 2004, and new 2005 NES School teams go to explorerschools.nasa.gov/ and click on the "School Teams" tab at the top of the page.

Summer Sustainability Conference
NASSMC will participate in the Summer Sustainability Conference to be held July 5-11 at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL.

Going International
The Explorer School concept is going to the Netherlands. The Delta Researchers School Program is patterned after NASA Explorer Schools and focuses on children between the ages of 9 and 12. DRS will emphasize human spaceflight, the International Space Station and other international cooperative projects. As part of the joint effort, NASA will bring Dutch teachers to NES workshops at NASA centers. Using NASA's materials, the teachers will gain many new resources and technology tools. NES administrators will support and provide distance-learning projects to support the DRS program. One of the first activities is a ham radio conversation between Dutch students and the International Space Station crew.

For more information about the international expansion visit www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/k-4/features/F_Dutch_Treat.html

For information about the NASA Explorer Schools Program visit explorerschools.nasa.gov/

For information about the NASSMC NASA Explorer Schools Partnerships for Sustainability Program visit www.nassmc.org/pfsproject.html

Of Interest...

+ The NASA Computational Technologies Project Science Interactives mini-simulations allow anyone to change physical parameters and watch the effect on phenomena within the Earth-Sun System and across the Universe. These Web-based applications give people access to the real equations and data on topics explored in NASA computational science investigations. Titles include Invasive Species, Seismic Waves, and Collapse of Clouds. www.truth-n-beauty.com/transfer/NasaCT/

Image: After the success of the first prototypes LiTraCon made the first large-scale piece for an exhibition at Arkitekturmuseet (Swedish Museum of Architecture), Stockholm.

+ Some of us at NASSMC love baseball season so it is of particular interest to note a recent study on the sport's great clutch hitters. Okay, only one of us really loves baseball season, but that's beside the point. What is a clutch hitter? University of Pennsylvania student Elan Fuld defines a clutch hitter as a batter who hits better at more important points of the game. And who are some of the greatest clutch hitters? Read the original press release from the University of Pennsylvania to find out: origin.www.upenn.edu/pennnews/article.php?id=793