STEM + North Central Iowa = Excellence

Administrators, teachers, counselors, parents, students and other STEM advocates are invited to nominate an inspirational science, technology, engineering or mathematics teacher for the 2016 I.O.W.A. STEM Teacher Award, sponsored by Kemin Industries and the Iowa Governor's STEM Advisory Council.

Formally known as The STEM Education Award for Inspired Teaching, this award is dedicated to honoring one teacher from each of the six STEM regions for their contribution and dedication to STEM education in Iowa. Each winner will receive $1,500, as well as another $1,500 to be used in their classroom.

This award is dedicated to honoring teachers who are making a significant difference in the lives of students across the state by providing excellent curriculum, encouraging lifelong learning and inspiring a passion for STEM beyond the classroom and into the future.

Eligible nominees include licensed, full-time, K-12 Iowa STEM teachers in public or non-public schools. Nominations for previous 2015 award recipients and self-nominations will not be accepted.

Click here to learn more.

Doug Jacobson

NC STEM Advisory Board Member:

Celebrating Over 10 Years of Cyber Security Outreach for Iowa High Schools

Over the past couple of years we have seen numerous articles about the need to cyber security professionals and how colleges are having a hard time recruiting students in security. Lead by Dr. Doug Jacobson, the faculty and staff at the Iowa State University Information Assurance Center (IAC) have been pioneers in the effort to encourage high school students to become interested in cyber security and in information technology.

A few highlights:

2004 - The IAC offered one of the nation's first high school summer camps focused on cyber security.
2006 - The nation's the first high school cyber defense competition
With over 25 competitions to our credit, Iowa State University has become a leader in hosting Cyber Defense Competitions (CDCs).
Student engagement and learning are a primary motivation for the style of cyber defense competitions run at ISU
2008 - The IT-Adventures Program is founded with funding from the Iowa Department of Economic Development and in partnership with the Technology Association of Iowa. The capstone event for students who participate is an event called IT-Olympics which is held on the ISU campus.
The IT-Adventures / IT-Olympics program grew from a few hundred students to over over 400 students.
2011 - Partnership with TAI's hyperstream program to provide learning materials for the after school clubs. Hyperstream was selected as one of the Governor's STEM scale up projects and now provides a single IT focused program for high schools and middle school.
2015 - The latest effort in security education is focused at middle and high schools. Iowa State has developed one of the nation's first cyber security literacy curriculums. http://www.security-literacy.org/
A website has been developed that provides a lab environment designed to let students and teachers experience certain aspects for security. The web site for the lab is www.hackerville.org

More details can be found in the following article.

Iowa State University's Electrical and Computer Engineering & Information Assurance Center

IT- EXPO DAY 2015

Who: Iowa High School Juniors and Seniors

When: November 2 or 9, 2015, 8:15 AM to 1:30 PM

Where: Iowa State University, Howe Hall

Building on the success of the 2013 and 2014 programs this program returns this year with a goal to reach and engage more students then ever! Small groups, 20 to 24, of students along with a chaperone provided by the school will experience 7 presentations/demos. Lunch will be provided! Space is limited, so register your class now.

How: Email registration document for your preferred date to ginny@iastate.edu

November 2nd Registration Spreadsheet

November 9th Registration Spreadsheet

Deadline: October 19, 2015

Questions: Email ginny@iastate.edu

When: October 19, 2015, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Where: Sheraton Hotel, 210 S Dubuque St., Iowa City

STEM Education Equity: Policies to Create Opportunities in Rural Iowa is a day-long symposium on the opportunities and challenges of strengthening STEM education in Iowa. The University of Iowa Public Policy Center, as part of its "Run Up to the 2016 Caucus" series, is planning the event in collaboration with the University of Iowa College of Education, and with the support of Iowa NSF EPSCoR*.

National and state experts will present an overview of STEM in Iowa, as well as innovations in rural areas across the country; examine STEM equity needs of disadvantaged students in rural areas; and discuss next generation science standards, school business partnerships, diversity in the STEM pipeline, and legislative perspectives.

For more information contact Leslie Gannon leslie-gannon@uiowa.edu or learn more or to register

Diversity in STEM Conference

Building Pipelines to Access and Inclusion

When: October 2, 2015, 8:30 AM - 2:00 PM

Where: Hawkeye Community College, Tama Hall, Waterloo, Iowa

This conference will bring together experts who will present the best means to increase the enthusiasm of diverse students for STEM disciplines and professions, as well as provide programs that demonstrate success in increasing access, retention, and graduation of diverse student populations in STEM.

Keynote: Dr. Christopher Emdin

Rethinking STEM

Dr. Christopher Emdin is a social critic, public intellectual, and science advocate whose commentary on issues of race, culture, inequality, and education have appeared in dozens of influential periodicals, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Forbes, and Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Complete the registration for the conference or to find more information.

Program sponsors:

NEW - Taking the Road Less Traveled
Career Awareness Infused in Experiential STEM

Students Participating in a TRLT Activity

The Program for Women in Science & Engineering has been sponsoring the Taking the Road Less Traveled career exploration conferences since 1987. Since that time over 60,000 girls, educators, and parents have participated in the conference and gained an increased awareness and understanding of career opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

Historically, the format of the conference included career awareness sessions in the morning with an interactive session in the afternoon. In response to consistent and overwhelming feedback from participants, the conference structure has transitioned from a predominantly lecture oriented format to a conference in which career awareness is infused in experiential STEM activities.

Fall 2015 TRLT Registration Spring 2016 TRLT Registration

Conference Flyer

Session description "Sneak Peek"

2015-16 Conference Dates

Fall 2015	Spring 2016
October 8 (8th grade) selection Sept 8-24	March 31 (8th grade)
October 22 (8th grade) selection Sept 22-Oct 8	April 7 (8th grade)
October 29 (9th/10th grade) selection Sept 29-Oct 15	April 28 (9th/10th grade

The Office of Biotechnology at Iowa State University Fall Newsletter

Featured in the Fall 2015 issue:

Free help from ISU experts and master biotechnology teachers
Award programs for educators
Biotechnology Outreach Education Center news and opportunities
Recycle lab supplies from the Office of Biotechnology
Career conferences for young women in grades 8-10
Microbiology workshop for high school students November 13
Field trips and free visits to Iowa schools by Biotechnology Outreach Education Center