For immediate
release
Contacts:
Steve Karsjen, Public Affairs, (515) 294-1856, karsjen@ameslab.gov
AMES LABORATORY WELCOMES
DOE SCIENCE EDUCATION INITIATIVE
New DOE program aims
to bolster science and math education nationwide
Ames, Iowa - Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham today
announced that the U.S. Department of Energy and its national
laboratories are launching an initiative to promote science
literacy and
help develop the next generation of scientists and engineers.
"Education is an integral part of everything we do and
have done at the Ames Laboratory," said director Tom Barton. "Thus,
we are particularly pleased with Secretary Abraham's announcement
and are eager to respond to this new challenge."
Ames Laboratory's education efforts are diverse. The Lab sponsors
two Science Bowl competitions annually, one for high school
students and the other for middle school students. Ames Laboratory
scientists are also involved in the Science Bound program,
which reaches underrepresented students in Des Moines, Iowa,
schools beginning in the 8th grade. In addition, Ames Lab hosts
Science Night activities for K-6 students at local elementary
schools; supports Iowa State University's Women in Science
and Engineering Career Conference, which provides hands-on
activities for middle school and high school girls interested
in careers in math and science; and the Ames Public Library
Summer Reading Program, which provides interactive activities
for students in grades 4-6.
The science education initiative -- called STARS, for Scientists
Teaching and Reaching Students -- will focus on several key
areas involving partnerships and educational opportunities
between DOE labs and teachers and students from elementary
school through high school. The program will provide hands-on
training for teachers and educational opportunities for students,
including career days, professional development programs and
an annual science conference bringing together teachers, students,
scientists and corporate innovators.
Initiative Details
The Secretary's science education initiative includes the
following steps:
- Through a pilot program starting this summer, bringing
K-12 teachers and community college faculty instructors to
seven
of DOE's national labs where they will work with scientists
and engineers with the goal of improving their knowledge
of science and their ability to teach. The DOE Laboratory
Science Teach Professional Development program will provide
participating teachers with three-year, mentor-intensive
science experiences that promise to result in better-trained
teachers -- and improved student achievement. DOE plans
to expand the program to all DOE labs.
-
Upgrading and expanding the scope of DOE's Argonne National
Laboratory's successful "Ask A Scientist" website. "Ask
A Scientist" has served as an excellent resource
for students, teachers and members of the public, providing
an
online forum where more than 12,000 basic and complex
questions have been fielded by expert scientists since
1991. DOE will
offer a link to "Ask A Scientist" on its
home page, and the department will improve the site's
software,
add
services and publicize the site so even more teachers
and students from around the country know about it
and can use
it.
- Organizing and hosting the first of an expected
yearly Fall conference called "What's Next?" that
will bring together scientists and corporate innovators
to
demonstrate
the breakthrough technologies and science they expect
to become commonplace in the future. The event would
serve to
focus national attention on how exciting science may
change our lives and provide another way to highlight
science for
students.
- DOE national laboratories will sponsor Career
Day Programs -- sending their scientists out to local
schools, especially
middle schools, to conduct hands-on experiments in
science classes and discuss career opportunities with students;
hold open houses that highlight lab scientists and their research;
and support local science fairs and students doing
science projects.
- DOE national laboratories will plan and host Science Appreciation
Days that will bring 1,000 fifth graders and 1,000
eighth graders to their facilities each year for a day.
- Taking advantage of
DOE's scientific leaders, including Nobel Laureates, and
craft ways to draw attention to science
as a career.
- Creating an Office of DOE Science Education that will be
responsible for coordinating and implementing the
Secretary's initiative.
Secretary Abraham also announced that he is creating
a special Secretary of Energy Advisory Board
Task Force to
assess what
additional ways DOE can help improve science
education in America. The special task force will be
chaired
by a prominent
leader in the world of science, technology
and business who will be named soon. The task forces
will be charged
with
reporting its findings and recommendations
to Secretary Abraham by the end of this year.
The Department of Energy's missions are national
security, energy security, environmental
clean up and science.
To help accomplish these missions, the department's
National
Nuclear
Security Administration, Office of Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of Environmental
Management, Office
of Fossil Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy,
Science and Technology and Office of Science
fund research
and development
projects
at the DOE's national laboratories, all of
which maintain science education programs
for
teachers
and K-12 students.
The department supports math and science
education to help provide a technically trained and
diverse
workforce for
the agency and the nation.
The text of the Secretary's remarks and information
about the labs' science education offerings
are available via
the Internet at: www.science.doe.gov. Ames Laboratory is operated for the Department of Energy by
Iowa State University. The Lab conducts research into various
areas of national concern, including energy resources, high-speed
computer design, environmental cleanup and restoration, and
the synthesis and study of new materials. For more information
on Ames Laboratory, visit our Web site at www.ameslab.gov.
###
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