SVSU and MiSTEM Community honor educators with STEM Stars award

KOCHVILLE TWP, MI– Academics, directors, I.T. specialists and a roster of STEM educators from throughout mid-Michigan have been honored for his or her work to advance studying.

Saginaw Valley State College, in partnership with the MiSTEM Community – East Central Michigan Area, has acknowledged 20 STEM professionals for his or her contributions to STEM schooling throughout the area.

A launch by SVSU mentioned that the people, representing faculties in seven Michigan counties, have been honored as “STEM Stars” at a STEM academics dinner hosted by the college on Tuesday, Feb. 21.

In recognition of their work, the discharge mentioned every honoree obtained a $250 award to boost STEM schooling of their classroom or program, in addition to 3-D printed STEM Stars keepsakes designed by SVSU’s Cardinal Options and produced by the college’s impartial testing laboratory.

SVSU STEM Director Adrianne Cole mentioned that the educators being honored are serving to to guide college students to assume critically to create an revolutionary future.

“Our 2023 STEM Stars are caring, devoted educators who empower their college students to develop into innovators and significant thinkers,” mentioned Cole. “These academics are devoted leaders of their faculties and communities, and I’m honored to acknowledge them as distinctive function fashions for STEM schooling.”

On its web page on SVSU’s web site, STEM@SVSU and MiSTEM – East Central Michigan Area are credited as partnering yearly to acknowledge STEM Stars from Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Midland and Saginaw counties.

The discharge shared that the MiSTEM Community is funded by means of a statewide grant and promotes the affect of STEM on financial improvement and schooling within the state.

Based on the college, the aim of STEM@SVSU is to develop a STEM expertise pipeline to satisfy the present and future wants of the Nice Lakes Bay Area by offering skilled improvement for STEM academics, partaking STEM professionals to boost STEM studying and growing experiential studying for college kids in any respect grade ranges.

This yr’s award recipients included academics, directors, chief science officer advisors, tutorial and IT specialists, esports coaches, and FIRST® Robotics and FIRST® LEGO® League coaches. They represented faculties from seven of the eight counties throughout the MiSTEM Community – East Central Michigan Area.

The next honorees, quotes and biographies have been supplied by Saginaw Valley State College and are organized by county:

Arenac County

• Kevin Beardsley, Science Olympiad coach for Sixth-Twelfth grade, Au Gres-Sims Center/Excessive College, Au Gres

“From superior cell initiatives, to volcanoes, to displays on STEM associated areas, Kevin has helped to construct a STEM focus within the Au Gres-Sims College District. He has devoted numerous hours of after-school time to Science Olympiad together with many different extracurricular actions.”

• Ryan Stokoszynski, CTE agriscience, AP biology trainer for Ninth-Twelfth grade at Standish-Sterling Excessive College, Standish

“Mr. Stokoszynski has a greenhouse he maintains all year long. His college students clone and develop numerous greens and flowers in winter and spring. Within the fall and winter, they plant and develop mushrooms. All year long he grows microgreens. The latest additions to this system are two Farmbots that the scholars have programmed to plant, water, and fertilize greens. Ryan Stokoszynski’s objective as an educator is partaking college students with STEM actions.”

Bay County

• Heather Richards, science trainer, science coach, CSO advisor, Seventh-Eighth grade, Western Center College, Auburn

“Her enthusiasm and pleasure for science and STEM is contagious. She is an distinctive trainer and a frontrunner who holds college students accountable but in addition makes it enjoyable for them to be taught.”

• Sheri Turner, science trainer, CSO advisor, Seventh-Eighth grade, Christa McAuliffe Center College, Bangor Township

“Relating to getting enthusiastic about hands-on science studying, Sheri is on high. Sheri goes above and past to arrange (and clear up) actions and labs to verify she has essentially the most partaking classes ready for her college students. Sheri has spent years getting enthusiastic about and doing what’s greatest for science studying in her classroom.”

Clare County

• Darin Mogg, elementary trainer, LEGO® League coach, 2nd grade, Farwell Elementary College, Farwell

“He does an incredible job of inspiring his college students and inspiring them to assume exterior the field. By means of Lego League, Mr. Mogg evokes children to make use of STEM expertise in a enjoyable and interesting approach. He evokes children to attempt new issues and to be inventive.”

• Angel Raymond, science and STEM trainer, Sixth grade, Farwell Center College, Farwell

“Angel is an superior science trainer. She supplies partaking classes to her college students by means of hands-on labs and expertise. Angel has taken further coaching to be taught to combine new expertise and concepts into her school rooms. She promotes an inquiry-based studying atmosphere, the place fallacious solutions will not be fallacious, however a pathway to find the idea being taught.”

Gratiot County

• Jolene Aylor, preschool trainer, Luce Street Early Childhood Studying Middle, Alma

“She works magic in her classroom with all she does revolving round engineering, math, science, and expertise. Her classroom includes a makerspace the place college students are inspired to make use of recycled and located supplies to create and engineer no matter their mind can think about.”

• Zach Baker, STEM trainer, Seventh grade, Fulton Center College, Middleton

“He has engaged in skilled studying to develop our STEM program totally; he has been prepared to do that exterior of his regular faculty day and alongside all his different obligations. As well as, he has introduced programming and robots to our college students, which is one thing they haven’t had expertise with previously.”

Isabella County

• Ken Schafer, physics trainer, AP environmental science trainer, FIRST® Robotics coach, Tenth-Twelfth grade, Mt. Nice Excessive College, Mt. Nice

“Ken works tirelessly to enhance the science division at MPHS by means of implementing new courses, working with new academics, and being an lively chief within the division. On high of this, final yr Mr. Schafer has began a FIRST® Robotics staff at MPHS together with securing all funding, discovering staff mentors, and dealing numerous hours along with his staff.”

Midland County

• Susan Doud, arithmetic trainer, engineering trainer, FIRST® Robotics mentor, AH Nickless Innovation Award coach, Sixth-Twelfth grade, Bullock Creek Excessive College, Midland

“As a math and engineering trainer at Bullock Creek Excessive College, she works each day to encourage the following era of STEM leaders. She pushes college students out of their consolation zones, encouraging them to discover new actions that encourage innovation and creativity.”

• Kim Scott, science trainer, Ok-Eighth grade, Saint Brigid Catholic College, Midland

“Kim plans NGSS (subsequent era science requirements) classes for all college students in kindergarten by means of eighth grades that match with their homeroom trainer’s science curriculum however enable college students to make use of the scientific technique and engineering design to make actual world connections of the idea.”

Saginaw County

• Jessie Bassett, science trainer, CSO advisor, Science Olympiad coach, Sixth-Twelfth grade, Frankenmuth Excessive College and E.F. Rittmueller Center College, Frankenmuth

“Mrs. Bassett coaches our Science Olympiad staff and he or she oversees college students within the CSO (chief science officer) program. She is partaking not solely college students in her Science Olympiad staff, but in addition reaching out with enjoyable and thrilling school-wide actions.”

• Shelley Biver, science trainer, Sixth-Eighth grade, Bethlehem Lutheran College, Saginaw

“Mrs. Shelley Biver has introduced her data of the superb STEMScopes curriculum to our faculty, and our college students are loving it. She stepped up this October when our Fifth grade trainer left unexpectedly, and has added Fifth grade to her each day science schedule, introducing them to STEMScopes and all the hands-on actions that our center faculty college students are partaking in.”

• Craig Blower, Robotics coach, center faculty principal, Sixth-Eighth grade, Swan Valley Center College, Saginaw

“He has additionally given college students the possibility to attempt new issues like coding which is like studying a international language. Craig has staff conferences the place they talk about numerous methods to construct their robotic, tips on how to rating factors and tips on how to be good sportsmen at their occasions. Robotics teaches many expertise and Craig is doing a fantastic job on the center faculty constructing these talent units inside these college students.”

• Theresa Bomba, STEAM specials trainer, Ok-4th grade, North Elementary College, Birch Run

“Theresa is a hard-working, inventive, STEAM trainer, who eagerly volunteered to develop a STEAM program a couple of years in the past when North Elementary didn’t have one. She spends numerous hours researching STEAM, curriculum and lesson concepts for our Kindergarten by means of Fourth grade college students.”

• Nickie Clark, highschool STEM and math trainer, Ninth-Twelfth grade, Freeland Excessive College, Freeland

Ms. Clark is a STEM Star in our district due to her pure love of instructing STEM ideas to college students. Math is rarely standard with college students, however she has a two-hour block class instructing math and physics synchronously, and the scholars love it. It’s hands-on studying and engages the scholars to need to be taught.”

• Jessi Koehler, STEM trainer, esports coach, younger 5′s-Sixth grade, Freeland Studying Middle and Freeland Elementary, Freeland

“Jessi is an incredible STEM trainer and goes above and past for her college students. She has lesson plans which might be geared in the direction of every grade stage and are partaking and enjoyable. She has began an esports membership and staff. She is all the time trying so as to add to our STEM program and offering households with alternatives for his or her youngsters.”

• Lisa McBride, STEM trainer, Ok-Sixth grade, Chester Miller Elementary College, Saginaw

“Her means to attach with college students and her expertise at instructing easy ideas, in addition to extra superior STEM, are each actually superior.”

“She has achieved a lot to counterpoint the lives of the scholars in our faculty. She challenges their minds to broaden their world and sense of pondering. The scholars are genuinely excited to see what she has in retailer for them.”

• Jamie Slate, science trainer, laptop science trainer, Ninth-Twelfth grade, Hemlock Excessive College, Hemlock

“Jamie Slate . . . brings enthusiasm and instructing excellence to each class that he’s requested to show. He’s an inspiring and expert physics, superior physics, chemistry, astronomy, botany, and zoology trainer. Most lately Jamie has taken the lead in creating and delivering a pc science class to his highschool college students.”

• Laura Trombley, expertise trainer, younger 5′s-Fifth grade, Robert B. Havens Elementary College and Shields Elementary College, Saginaw

“Laura goes above and past in her function as a expertise trainer by main after-school and before-school teams. She shares her data of coding by means of robotics applications. She facilitated a FIRST® Lego Robotics Staff for a number of years, assembly each day after faculty to prepared college students for the competitors. She is presently instructing coding to 4th and Fifth graders earlier than faculty.”

The 2023 rendition of STEM Stars marks the 4th yr SVSU and MiSTEM have acknowledged educators for his or her efforts. Nominations have been reviewed by a variety committee.

For extra details about SVSU’s STEM program, go to svsu.edu/stem or comply with this system on Fb and Instagram.

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