News :: Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach

David Petersen, a former participant in the Scientist-in-the-Classroom Partnership (formerly the National Science Foundation GK-12) program was recently voted the best public school teacher in the Nashville Scene's 2008 Best of Nashville Readers' Poll.

While in the program, David was a fellow at Cameron Middle School. He is currently a math teacher at Independence High School. Congratulations, David!

The results of the 2008 Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology are in and two School for Science and Math seniors have earned semifinalist recognition in the prestigious national Siemens Science Competition. Congratulations to Hana Erkou and Elizabeth Wei for this tremendous accomplishment!

Hana Erkou is a student at Nashville School of the Arts and she is working in the laboratory of Louise Rollins-Smith in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. The title of her research paper is, “Antimicrobial Peptides that inhibit HIV and protect Beneficial Lactobacilli.”

Elizabeth Wei is a student at Hume-Fogg and she is working in the laboratory of Chris Williams in Gastroenterology. The title of her research paper is, “Creating an inducible expression system where the role of MTG8 in colorectal cancer can be better understood.”

All ten School for Science and Math Seniors applied to the competition. Last year one SSMV senior, Uyen Pham, earned semifinalist recognition.

All middle school science teachers, grades 5-8, from Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools are invited to apply for the Middle School Science Teacher Mini Grants sponsored by The Vanderbilt Institute for STEM Education (VIStE), a program of the Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach. Up to 10 awards will be granted during the 2008-2009 school year with a maximum award of up to $1,000 per grant.  

The grant program encourages innovative approaches to teaching and promotes creative ideas by funding academic projects not supported by school budgets. For more information or to download an application, please visit the program's webpage at http://www.scienceoutreach.org/mini_grants/.

Planning is underway for a Family Science Safari for the Antioch and Cane Ridge Clusters Middle Schools. Invited middle schools include Antioch Middle School, Apollo Middle School, John F. Kennedy Middle School, and Thurgood Marshall Middle School.

This event is hosted by Thurgood Marshall Middle School at Cane Ridge High School on Tuesday, November 11th, from 6:30 -8:30 PM.

Approximately 150 scientists, STEM graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows from Vanderbilt University, Tennessee State University, Meharry Medical College, Fisk University, and Austin Peay State University will be conducting hands-on science activities. Students and parents will rotate through approximately six of the activities at 15 minute intervals. All MNPS science teachers and their families are also invited.

Find out more at the Family Science Night webpage.

Scott Merrick, Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach's Teacher-in-residence, has accepted an invitation from conference organizers to speak at this year's Internet2 membership meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana. The conference website explains that the "Fall Member Meeting will feature track sessions and demonstrations that highlight innovative uses of advanced networking for research and teaching, as well as the development and evolution of high-performance network infrastructures in support of local to global cyberinfrastructure." Merrick will share the spotlight October 14 on a panel about Virtual Worlds with Margaret Corbit, Cornell University; Ben Fineman, Internet2, Moderator; Merrilea Mayo, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; Chris Melissinos, Sun Microsystems; Rob Rothfarb, Exploratorium; and Kathy Schrock, Nauset Public Schools. He will also attend sessions from the event-packed program and network with leaders in information management from all corners of the nation.

We invite you to join us for a presentation by Richard Louv, author of the national best seller Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. The CSO is excited to co-sponsor this event along with the National Wildlife Federation, Nashville Metro Parks, and others.

Admission is FREE and the talk will be held on Monday, November 10, 6pm at Hume-Fogg High School.

The recipient of the 2008 Audubon Medal, Richard Louv identified a phenomenon we all knew existed but couldn't quite articulate: nature-deficit disorder. Since its initial publication, his book has created a national conversation about the disconnection between children and nature, and his message has galvanized an international movement. Now, three years later, we have reached a tipping point, with the book inspiring Leave No Child Inside initiatives throughout the country.

Hailed as "an absolute must-read" by the Boston Globe and "too tantalizing to ignore" by Audubon magazine, Last Child in the Woods is the inspiring work that proves children need nature as much as nature needs children.

We look forward to all of our CSO colleagues, program participants, families and friends attending this special event.

View the invitation from Metro Parks.