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STEMester of Service
e-Newsletter
Vol. 2 #4
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Dear ,
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Susan and I have been thoroughly enjoying the one on one phone calls with you. I have viewed each one as a holiday present; an uplifting reminder of how fortunate YSA is to be able to work with each of you.
As I write this final newsletter of 2010, I think about how far along we have come in the past year. For the returning grantees, this time last year we were all new to the STEMester of Service program. Most of us were new to service-learning. But through your hard work and successes, we have been able to expand the program, bringing on mentee teachers and a new round of grantees.
For the mentee teachers and new grantees, I am in awe of your commitment to your students and your willingness to try something new. From so many of you, I have heard the same thing, "I've been doing this type of work for long time, but I just didn't know what to call it, and I didn't have guiding principles. STEMester of Service is providing me with that needed framework." I am glad that we have found each other; it's a great match!
Cheers to 2011 and what lies ahead!
This issue of the newsletter includes updates on the following topics:
- Martin Luther King Day of Service;
- RMC student pre-surveys;
- Technology mentorship opportunity;
- Your success stories.
Enjoy!
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| Timeline | |
January 17, 2011
MLK Day of Service
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| Incorporating MLK Day into your STEMester of Service |
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service can provide the foundation for your students' STEMester of Service efforts and ground their work in the context of service, its importance, and impacts.
MLK Day of Service (January 17, 2011) is a part of United We Serve, the President's national call-to-service initiative. It calls for Americans from all walks of life to work together to provide solutions to our most pressing national problems, including the environmental and disaster preparedness issues that you and your students are addressing. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. federal holiday.
In order to incorporate MLK Day into your STEMester of Service, here are some topics to reflect upon with your students:
- The National Call-to-Service: why are we asked to serve on MLK Day?
- The Scope of MLK Day: Utilize the mlkday.gov website and the project registration feature to show students the national scope of MLK Day and inform them that they are part of a large service movement. People all over the country are serving on this day. By serving, they are continuing MLK's legacy and connecting themselves to those who came before them.
- Duration and Intensity: STEMester of Service is based on the idea of committing oneself to creating significant change. MLK shared the same aspiration. Talk with your students about the values and traits needed to create lasting change. Why is it important to work on a cause for a significant period of time, such as a semester?
- Education and Career Connections: How might MLK's values help you become a better student, scientist, engineer, accountant, etc?
We would like to share your MLK Day plans and activities with the Corporation for National and Community Service and Learn and Serve America. Please provide us with this information by completing the following form by January 10th:
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Reporting Your Successes
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RMC Student Pre-Surveys
The student pre-surveys, for the service-learning students and the comparison classroom students, are due by January 14th. If you have any questions about the pre-surveys, please email Linda Fredericks at fredericks@rmcdenver.com
Your participation is required; it will increase the credibility of the evaluation and the STEMester of Service program.
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Partnering with a Technology Company
| YSA is in the exploratory stage of developing a partnership with a leading international technology company, which could add a unique new resource to our STEMester of Service program. Please help us design a program that meets your needs, as well as the needs of your students and school community!
We have created a very brief questionnaire - just three short questions. Susan and I will be meeting with the company on January 19th.
Please submit the form by January 10th so that Susan and I can develop a proposal based on your feedback. The questionnaire is available at the following site:
http://tinyurl.com/26om4oy
We look forward to your comments and suggestions!
Note: We have extended the deadline from December 10th to January 10th.
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Sharing Successes
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Chicago West Side Christian School, IL: Karen Trout and Jae Lappinga love the mentor-mentee model and are both glad to have a supportive colleague with whom they can plan and brainstorm. Jae and her students will reflect upon their service-learning efforts and demonstrate impacts using Glogster EDU, an online poster-making tool that incorporates text,photos and videos.
Cascade Middle School, WA: Last year Mary Stell's students were tutoring one elementary school class. This year, Mary's students, as well as the students of her two mentees, Jeff Chinn and Scott Bristol, are tutoring classes at two elementary schools. That is tremendous scale in one year!
Sarah Bayer and Kathryn Sampson at Lincoln IB World School (CO) are off and running for an exciting project year. Together, they are working on the development of a zero-energy school district. Kathryn is planning to implement a similar math tutoring program with her STEMester of Service students to that which Mary Stell (Cascade MS) has, and the two of them are brainstorming a mentor-mentee relationship across the miles (and Skype) amongst their math students. The plan is for the experienced Cascade tutors to mentor the new math tutors at Lincoln IB World School, providing tips on how to be a successful math tutor.
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Best,
Sarah Guy
Education Manager
Youth Service America
sguy@ysa.org
202-296-2992 x110
This material is based upon work supported by the Corporation for National
and Community Service under Learn and
Serve America Grant No. 09KSADC002.
Opinions or points of view expressed in this
document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official
position of the Corporation or the Learn and
Serve America Program.
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