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CINSAM Annual
Report 2000-2001 |
The program began its second year of operation in July 2000 with the hiring of a director, Dr. Phillip Schmidt. Karen Ware joined Dr. Schmidt during the summer to serve as CINSAM’s program manager. Her responsibilities include planning and implementing programs of the center and producing communications with the center’s stakeholders. We began the search for an Outreach Coordinator, but were unable to find an appropriate candidate who was not already committed to position for the coming academic year. We are currently renewing that search with a new pool of candidates who can begin in early summer.
Several faculty, hired using CINSAM funds, began their work in fall 2000. Tom Sproat joined the Department of Biological Sciences with dual specialties in animal behavior and biology education. Dr. Anjana Arora joined the School of Education as a specialist in science education and Dr. Andrew Long joined the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. Dr. Long is an applied mathematician with industrial and governmental laboratory experience. These three individuals add a variety of abilities to those of the existing faculty, abilities that help to address the goals of CINSAM. Another new faculty member, Dr. Richard Durtsche of the Department of Biological Sciences has also been very active in CINSAM related programs and has shown the ability to effectively involve undergraduates in his research.
The staff of CINSAM had previously included Charles Bowen and Lee Weiner who are responsible for seeing to the computer needs of the departments of natural sciences and the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science respectively. Rebecca Thompson is a full time secretary who adds half time support to the Department of Biological Sciences and half time support as CINSAM’s budget manager. Pat Ponte is a half time secretary who provides support to the Departments of Chemistry and of Physics & Geology. Dr. Mike McPherson serves part time as our industrial outreach liaison until we are able to hire a full time Outreach Coordinator. We have been fortunate to have excellent student assistants, among them David Braud, our webmaster, and several students who assist in our office and in departmental labs.
Several CINSAM-funded positions are currently open. Dr. John Rockaway will join the Department of Physics and Geology next year as a Visiting Professor of Geology. Dr. Rockaway was chair of the Department of Geological Engineering at The University of Missouri-Rolla and will assist in the redevelopment of the Geology program at Northern. The Department of Chemistry searched for a chemist with an interdisciplinary focus but was unable to hire one this year and will continue their search next year. The Department of Physics and Geology is trying to fill its CINSAM position and the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science is in the process of searching for a computer scientist. We have played an active role in interviewing these and other candidates and trying to attract individuals who will add to the ability of the faculty to meet CINSAM’s goals. Finally we will work with Dean Gail Wells and the Department Chairs to identify where to place the final CINSAM position in the physical sciences as well as how to add a laboratory equipment specialist.
One of the first activities was to create an internal advisory committee consisting of faculty members from the sciences, mathematics and science/math education. This committee established the CINSAM mission statement, reviewed the goals, and developed strategies for accomplishing these goals. The mission statement is:
The mission of CINSAM is to enhance the
teaching, learning, and applying of Science and Mathematics at NKU and in the
schools of the northern Kentucky region
through interdisciplinary collaboration.
The goals are to:
The strategies to accomplish these goals are in the Appendix. These goals and strategies informed all of CINSAM’s activities during the year and, with appropriate modification, will continue to do so in the future. The activities of CINSAM relate to the academic trinity of teaching, research, and outreach. Some of the activities like the Integrative Science course and the Science/mathematics Alliances are supported directly in the budget. Faculty members receive funding for their projects from CINSAM based on external reviewers evaluation of their projects coupled with an allocation process that involves consensus of the Department Chairs. The grant proposal and review process are described in the Appendix.
Teaching
The Integrative Science courses (SCI 110, 111) have been developed over the past two years. They are now regularly offered courses with a total of three sections offered each term. The goals of the courses are to:
1. introduce students to how science is conducted;
2. improve students understanding of major ideas in science
3. illustrate how scientific discovery crosses disciplinary boundaries; and
4. increase student’s awareness of current scientific issues and of the importance of scientific literacy to understanding and resolving issues.
The courses have two 3-hour class meetings per week, which allows the students and instructors to employ a workshop approach to learning about science. Large blocks of time provide the flexibility that is necessary in a course of this type. Some meetings may be entirely devoted to one experiment, while most will be a combination of class discussion, student presentation, lecture, computer work, observation, and problem solving. A team of faculty members teaches each course, with each faculty member responsible for one section. Team members share their expertise on specific topics with their colleagues from other disciplines.
This course is currently taught in sections of size at most 16 due to a shortage of adequate “workshop” space. This shortage will be alleviated somewhat with the increase in the amount of lab space in the new building. After we move to the new Natural Science Building, the course will be taught in classes of size 24. Another limitation to expanding the course to a large number of sections is the hesitancy of faculty members to teach outside their traditional disciplines. We are trying to overcome this difficulty by encouraging interested faculty members to “shadow” a section for a semester before teaching the course. This has been accomplished with the cooperation of department chairs in the reassignment of faculty time for such activities. Furthermore, we are planning a short workshop for faculty after the end of the spring term to give them a taste of the course.
Qualitative evaluations of the course by the students indicate an overwhelming degree of satisfaction, this from students who previously had a strong antipathy toward science. While we are convinced that the guided-inquiry approach to science is appropriate for most students, we also plan to carry out assessments of student knowledge and attitude for students who have completed the integrative science course in comparison with those who are taking traditional introductory science courses.
Several other CINSAM-supported faculty projects related to teaching were carried out last year:
·
Dr. Jon Hastings, Biological Sciences, directed a pilot course,
“Student Field Research.” Its purpose was to involve NKU students in research
on federal lands in New Mexico. Six
students visited sites of research in astronomy, meteorology, and ecology, and
had the opportunity to meet with individuals with varying economic interests in
federal lands. Students became familiar
with governance of federal lands, particularly use in research and were exposed
to a variety of viewpoints about land-use issues. The primary goal was to expose students to field research —and
its rigors and requirements— in a new setting.
Research centered on an annual cicada,
Platypedia mohavensis, which uses a unique acoustical signaling in
courtship but about whom there have been very few studies published. The pilot program, if successful, may serve
as the foundation for the development of a formal summer field experience
course.
· Dr. Yvonne Meichtry, Education, directed a project “EDU 640: Standards-Based Course Design.” There was a need to update this course, last offered in spring 2000, to enrich the inventory of science education resources available for use in standards-based, in-service teacher science education courses through the School of Education.
A new course design will be based on national and state standards that have been published since that time. In addition to training teachers in the use of standards-based curricula, the course will serve as a vehicle to begin an ongoing network of science teachers for purposed of collaboration ant to recruit supervisors for pre-service teacher field experiences.
· Dr. Diana McGill, Chemistry, and Dr. Patrick Schultheis, Biological Sciences, were principal instructors in a project, “Enhancement of Multidisciplinary Laboratory Experiences: Using Light Absorbance as a Tool,” which recognized that the addition of a diode array spectrophotometer would allow the development of new experiments in both the biochemistry lab and molecular biology lab. Furthermore, the addition of such a versatile instrument, greatly alleviates the long wait that students have while needing to use existing equipment. Enrollment, too, is limited for certain labs because of the lack of equipment, and this instrument also can address that problem.
· Drs. John Filaseta and Michael McPherson, Physics and Geology, co-directed a project, “Developing Interactive-Engagement teaching Methods for First-Year Science.” Education research suggests that students in traditional lecture-format science courses obtain little conceptual understanding of science, but learning improves when courses are taught using interactive-engagement (IE) methods. This “heads-on/hands-on” approach yields immediate feedback through discussion with peers and instructor. Most NKU science courses are taught in the traditional format due to certain limitations. The project discusses these limitations, plans to overcome them, and has embarked on a multi-year plan to develop and implement IE methods for first-year science courses, initially PHY 110, PHY 211, and PHY 220.
We need to work on incorporating more science and mathematics students in the honor’s program as well as including more honor’s students in advanced science courses. NKU’s Honor’s program has a traditional liberal arts emphasis on humanities and social sciences. Courses from these disciplines require fewer prerequisites than courses from the natural sciences and mathematics. The challenge is to work with the Honor’s program to create a track of science studies that will be attractive to our majors while maintaining accessibility to the humanities and social science majors.
Research
Undergraduate research of two types is taking place at Northern with CINSAM support. The first is the traditional search for new knowledge but generally with the requirement that the work be carried out by an interdisciplinary team led by faculty members from different departments. The success of this approach is seen from the fact that thirteen students working on CINSAM-supported projects received recognition for their efforts at the November 30-December 2 meeting of the Kentucky Academy of Science meeting where they gave presentations. Participating students included:
· Stuart Oherle, who, with Drs. Judy Westrick and Miriam Kannan, gave a presentation on “Algal Monitoring on the Ohio River: An Increased Concentration of Cyanobacteria.” The work was related to Westrick’s, Kannan’s and Dr. Kevin Kirby’s Project, “Optimizing Drinking Water Treatment Using Neural Networks.”
· Maureen C. Early and Kevin Flerlage, whose presentations, “Morphologic Comparison of Sarraconiopus Mites from Pitcher Plants,” and “Derivation of a Claassification Function for Distinguishing Closely Related Mite Species,” were related to Drs. Rob Naczi’s Greg Dahlem’s and Scott Linder’s project, “Systematics of Mites and Flies Associating with Pitcher Plants.”
· Olivia Whitford, whose presentation “In Vitro Assay System Used to Determine Metastatic Ability of HT-1080 Human Fibroscarcoma Cells, was co-authored by Dr. Raymond E. Richmond.
· Laura Morris, who, with Dr. Judy Westrick, gave a presentation on “The Evaluation of Ion Exchange Resins to Develop an Electro-chemical Ion Exchange Electrode for Dilute Metal Solutions.” The work was related to Westrick’s, Kannan’s and Dr. Kevin Kirby’s project, “Optimizing Drinking Water Treatment Using Neural Networks.”
· Michelle Nickels, whose presentations, “The Impact of Total Organic Carbon Removal Regulations on a Conventional Water Treatment Plant” and “Optimizing Drinking Water Treatment Using Neural Networks,” was related to Westrick’s, Kannan’s and Dr. Kevin Kirby’s project.
· Hugo Ong, who, with Dr. Diana McGill, presented “Palytoxin effects on Na, K ATPase Chimeric Protein.”
· Doug Millay, who, with Dr. Debra Pearce, presented “The Effect of Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on Fertility Rate in Female Rats and Mortality Rates in Their Offspring.”
· Tonya Foree who, with Dr. Robert Naczi, presented “Comparative Morphology of Sarraceniopus Mites from Two Species of Sarracenia Pitchers.” The presentation was related to Drs. Rob Naczi’s, Greg Dahlem’s, and Scott Linder’s project, “Systematics of Mites and Flies Associating with Pitcher Plants.”
· J. Gabbard presented “Limited variability of genitalia size within species of the genus Fletchrimyia (Diptera: Sarcophagidae): Inter- or intraspecific causes? .” The presentation was related to Drs. Rob Naczi’s, Greg Dahlem’s, and Scott Linder’s project, “Systematics of Mites and Flies Associating with Pitcher Plants.”
· Valentine, P. “Causes for Sarraceniopus host specificity.” This presentation was related to work with Dr. Naczi.
· Melvin Leap and Anthony Koehl who presented “Sexual Conflict in the Walking Cicada, Okanagana synodica.” Their presentation was an outcome of Dr. Jon Hastings’s project, “Field Research Experience.”
· Amy E. Seitz, who presented “Thermal Relations in the Grass Cicada, Beameria venosa.” The presentation was an outcome of Dr. Jon Hastings’s project, “Field Research Experience.”
· Douglas T. Baker, who presented “The Effects of Sodium Diethyldithiocarbamate on the Uptake and Acute Toxicity of Chromium and Manganese in Zebra Mussels (Dreissena plymorpha).” This presentation was sponsored by Dr. Miriam Kannan.
In addition, poster presentations were made by NKU students Rachel DiTrapani, Emily McElhinney, Kenny Jones, Brian Dundas, Brian Talbert, Sean Roberts, Matt Short, David Hogan, Kevin Rand, Allen Thomas, Rebecca Foltz, Twila Strasinger, Dayna Crock, Sara Vogel, and Susan Trauth.
Kevin Flerlage and Michelle Barker received first-place awards from the Kentucky Academy of Science for their presentations.
Several more students have given presentations at other meetings or will do so in the near future.
Our students will have a further opportunity to showcase their work at the Second Undergraduate Research Poster Competition to be held April 24-25 on the NKU campus. Undergraduate students from all colleges and universities in the greater Cincinnati area are invited to present their work in the form of posters that will be judged in four categories:
· Life Science, including biology, molecular, biology, and biochemistry
· Physical Science, including astronomy, chemistry, physics and geology
· Mathematics, including statistics and computer science
· Behavioral and Social Science, including anthropology, geography, psychology, sociology, and political science
A $500 prize will be awarded for the best research in each category.
The second types of research-related work are externships with area business and industry:
Newport Aquarium:
Dr. Jerry Carpenter, Biological Sciences, directed a program for student externships at the Newport Aquarium. Students majoring in the biological sciences, physical sciences, and mathematics were able to gain hands-on experience.
Three students, Cameo Heiss, Erica Ashcraft, and Lisaann Hampton, were paid externs and had previous experience at the Aquarium as unpaid interns. Each extern had a specific project. Heiss took a series of photographs and made a pictorial key to the sharks on display. The key was useful for identification for the purposes of feeding the sharks or treating them for medical problems. Ashcraft used experience gained in invertebrate zoology and marine biology courses to plan a technique to culture moon jellyfish at the Aquarium. Hampton worked with the aquarium’s consulting veterinarian to study the formalin (used to kill external parasites) concentrations in water in which quarantined animals have been placed, and ultimately have more reliable treatments, save on the cost of formalin, and reduce the need for disposal of toxic matter.
A new group of students, Michelle Lamping , Jennifer Ortlepp, and Bree-Ann Zibulka, is continuing this working relationship with the Aquarium.
H & S Chemical Co:
Drs. Roger Blanchard, Vinay Kumar, and James Niewahner of the Chemistry Department are currently directing their students on three separate projects for this chemical company:
These three chemistry students are gaining valuable laboratory experience as well as practical experience in determining the commercial feasibility of chemical processes.
ERMC:
Three projects currently underway involve our students with NKU’s Environmental Resource Management Center. These are:
Other projects under development involve the potential for our students to work on the microbial and chemical properties of a prospective disinfectant for landfills, and on the remediation of streambeds adjacent to a large gravel mining operation.
All these projects involve the generation by faculty members of proposals to the companies involved, with CINSAM sharing some of the cost of the projects. Not only do they benefit the students by providing opportunities to work on complex problems, but also they support local industry by adding to the local problem-solving infrastructure and by developing potential employees.
One area of need is to expand the pool of faculty involved in research and externships. We intend to work with Dean Wells and the Department Chairs to establish selective course reductions (funded by CINSAM) for faculty who propose research or externship initiation projects. These need not involve students initially, but must have a strong potential for student involvement. We will develop these minigrants for faculty who propose projects that have not yet received funding from CINSAM.
Outreach also takes several forms including outreach to teachers and students in local schools as well as outreach to the general public.
CINSAM-supported
science and mathematics alliances are discipline-oriented groups of teachers
from local schools and the University.
The alliances meet roughly four times per year for programs that are
activity oriented, with an emphasis on materials and procedures that the
teachers can take back to the school room. There are active alliances in the
areas of Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, and Middle School Science. The program currently is being expanded to
develop alliances for Earth and Space Science, Biology, Environmental
Education, and Elementary Mathematics and Science.
Several faculty-developed projects have provided significant outreach to local teachers of science and mathematics:
· Dr. Dennis Lye, Biological Sciences, directs a program, “Videomicroscopy and Microbiology Technology for High School and Middle School Classrooms.” It provides equipment, training, curriculum content, and supplies critical to effective presentations and incorporation of microbiology into the curriculum of three local classrooms annually. Students have the opportunity to observe bacterial cells, culture a variety of microscopic organisms, and record microscopic images on videotape for later use. Science teachers have the opportunity to develop activities concerning microscopic organisms that are currently not taught in their schools because of instrumentation or supply deficiencies.
· Dr. Raymond Richmond and Mr. Robert Kues, Biological Sciences, direct a program, “A Gross Human Anatomy Dissection Workshop and Formation of a Collaborative Group for Secondary Education Science Teachers.” Because high school anatomy and physiology courses stress human anatomy and because this provides a framework for other studies in health drug awareness, sports injuries, and other related topics, this project helps strengthen teachers’ knowledge in actual laboratory/lecture studies involving the dissection and study of human cadavers, enhancing their own understanding of human anatomy and making them more effective classroom teachers.
· Dr. Gina M. Foletta, Mathematics and Computer Science, directed a project, “Computer-Algebra-System Intensive Mathematics in Kentucky.” Responding to a need to prepare teachers to work in technology-intensive environments and to provide appropriate curriculum materials, this initiative is bringing new teaching methods, content, technology, and instrumentation into local high school classrooms. It supports teachers by providing materials, in-service training in the curriculum, classroom sets of graphing calculators, and site licenses for dynamic geometry software. It introduces teachers to new teaching methods and adjustment of course content.
· Drs. Vernon Hicks and Vinay Kumar, Chemistry, Dr. Raymond Enzweiler, Physics and Geology, and Dr. Bradley Bielsky, Thomas More College, directed a project, “Incorporating Technology-Based Data Acquisition and Analysis into the Middle Grade Curriculum.” In this project, a series of one-week summer workshops for 20 middle-grade teachers and students are offered and are designed to promote hands-on technology-based data acquisition and analysis into science classes prior to high school. The workshops demonstrate the use of inexpensive and exciting technology to collect data, analyze them, and present the results in a visual manner in various environments. The workshops use the Vernier LabPro data collection unit that can accept over 25 inexpensive sensors, may stand alone to collect data, or can be interfaced with a variety of computers and calculators. Participants receive $1000 worth of equipment, with half the funds provided by CINSAM and half by each participant’s school district.
· Dr. Yvonne Meichtry, Education, served as project consultant with director Lorna Harrell on “Preparing for a Regional Center of Environmental Education at NKU.” This project will lay the groundwork for a Regional Center for Environmental Education at NKU as part of a network of centers at each state university. The centers will serve as catalysts to improve the way college students, teachers, and the general public learn about their environment. The Kentucky General Assembly mandated creation of these centers and has charged the Kentucky Environmental Education Council with their implementation. An article entitled “An Environmental Education Needs Assessment of K-12 Teachers” has been submitted for publication to the Journal for Environmental Education.
· A different type of innovative outreach opportunity was the Silver Grove Science Camp. The first part of this program comprised professional development sessions offered January 10 and 17. They were taught cooperatively by faculty from the School of Education and the natural sciences. The purpose of these sessions was to help teachers from the Silver Grove (Kentucky) School District better prepare their students for the Science Camp at NKU in March.
The camp itself was held
March 20-24. Silver Grove School students from grades K through 8 spent time at
the NKU campus and environs, exploring various facets of science. They traveled to the Newport Aquarium for a
behind-the-scenes tour led by NKU interns, and to the A. J. Jolly Nature Center
for a day on environmental science. On
campus, they worked with NKU faculty from the sciences on water quality and
fossil studies, and they interacted with education faculty and students in
hands-on science activities.
Another necessary function of CINSAM is to bring more students from our local schools to campus. We must work with the assistance of our Outreach Coordinator, to develop programs that attract students to campus either on weekends or during the summer. We have two very interesting programs this summer that might provide models for this kind of activity in the future. Dr. Jon Hastings is coordinating a series of three weeklong workshops on integrative science opportunities for high school teachers and a few of their best students. These workshops will provide teachers and students an opportunity to work side-by-side on a project involving molecular biology, cardiac physiology, or water-quality analysis. Andy Long will offer Summer Experiences for At-Risk Young Scientists (SEARYS), a program that is targeted at high school youth from inner city schools who show promise in the sciences. In the future, we will try to increase these types of activities that draw on the expertise of our faculty.
CINSAM
also reaches out to the community to increase the appreciation and
understanding of science and mathematics:
The
Central Kentucky Regional Science Fair, hosted by CINSAM, was held at
NKU on Saturday, March 24. This is an
effort for NKU and CINSAM to establish a Regional Fair in northern Kentucky
after gaining experience working with representatives from the Central Kentucky
Regional Science Fair.
The board for the upcoming fair was comprised of faculty from NKU, northern Kentucky area teachers, and engineers and scientists from the northern Kentucky and greater Cincinnati areas.
A meeting for area teachers was held in November, 2000 so they might obtain materials and resources to assist their students in preparing projects. Posters, brochures, and fliers also were made available to schools.
Approximately 250 students ranging from grades 4 through 12 participated in the Fair. All student projects either had received superior ratings at local science fairs or were so judged by their teachers. Top students from this science fair will be sent along with their teachers/sponsors to the International Science Fair in San Jose, California in May. NKU and other local personnel are administering most details for this fair.
A three-day Symposium Series, “Probing the Mysteries of the Natural World: Forests, Cells, and Seas,” was presented April 10-12, 2000, by CINSAM.
Speakers included Dr. Steve L. Stice, Dr. Sylvia Earle, and Dr. Eloy Rodriguez.
Stice, of the University of Georgia and ProLina, Inc., spoke on “Cloning: From Bioethics to Reviving the Extinct Mammoth.” His work has involved cloning of rabbits and the first cloned transgenic calves. His talk focused on the future potential of cloning and the ethical issues raised by this technology.
Earle’s topic was “Exploring the Deep Frontier.” The leader of the Sustainable Seas Expeditions, Earle has led more than 50 underwater expeditions and is explorer in residence for the National Geographic Society. Her talk focused on deep ocean exploration with education outreach.
Rodriguez presented a talk on “Exploring the Amazon Rainforest for Novel Natural Medicines and Anti-Viral Drugs from Tropical Vines and Giant Termites.” A nationally known chemist, Rodriguez presented findings on tropical medicines and the discoveries of anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and tumor-inhibiting substances isolated from termites, plans, and birds.
This year’s CINSAM Symposium Series involves three nationally known lecturers who will give their perspectives on “Within, Around, Beyond: Unlocking Science’s Secrets.”
On Tuesday, March 6, Juan Enriquez-Cabot was to have spoken on “At the Crossroads of a Life-Science Revolution.” Unfortunately, he was unable to leave Boston due to a major snowstorm, so his presentation was cancelled and will be rescheduled for early Fall 2001.
On Tuesday, April 3, Dr. Mark Moffett will deliver a presentation on “The High Frontier: Science at the Top of the Rainforest Canopy.” Moffett, a Harvard-trained ecologist and award-winning photographer, combines high adventure with a naturalist’s eye for a presentation that inspires insights and ideas. His passion for science, exploration, and subject are combined in a vivid and comprehensive picture of the tropical rainforests, and the perilous challenges its research presents for scientists. He has shot more covers for National Geographic than any other photographer.
We also presented a number of special lectures on campus. On March 20, 2000, Sheila Tobias, noted author and science education consultant presented a series of lectures around the theme of science policy and how it affects women in their perception of science. Her presentations were attended by faculty and students from a variety of academic areas, including many outside the sciences and mathematics.
On October 5, 2000, aerospace engineer Karla Clark visited campus and gave a presentation in the University Center theatre. Her presentation, “Difficult Destinations: Treks to the Solar System’s Farthest Reaches,” discussed the engineering problems inherent in long-term space missions. Clark herself has worked on the Mars Pathfinder, Hubble Space Telescope, and Cassini Mission projects and is flight system manager for the Europa and Pluto-Kuiper Express mission.
Her presentation was attended not only by numerous NKU faculty and students, but an invitation to her talk was extended to local schools and more than 200 high school students from the area attended as well. Clark was not only an intelligent, informative, and entertaining lecturer, but served as an excellent role model for students contemplating careers in this field.
We also reached out to our community through local cable television. In October, Dr. Schmidt was a guest on “Northern Kentucky Magazine” in an effort to promote the Regional Science Fair and especially the program we were to offer in November introducing students, teachers, and parents to the Science Fair. He was a guest on Dr. Jon Draud’s “Education Matters” program in March and used the opportunity to describe CINSAM and many of the programs that it is offering to teachers and schools.
We also strive to create an atmosphere of interdisciplinary cooperation and appreciation through a regular CINSAM Seminar Series on the NKU campus. These seminars were initially intended for the faculty of sciences, mathematics and science and math education, but have been well attended by students, faculty from other departments and teachers from local schools.
Twelve
speakers representing NKU departments as well as five guest speakers made presentations
on a variety of scientific and outreach-related topics. For example, Drs. Miriam Kannan and Judy
Westrick, Biological Sciences, and their students gave a presentation on their
model to optimize treatment of drinking water; Dr. Vern Hicks, Vinay Kumar,
Chemistry, Ray Enzweiler, Physics and Geology, and Brad Bielski of Thomas More College explained their
efforts to incorporate technology-based acquisition and analysis into the
middle grade curriculum; and Jon
Hastings, Biological Sciences, described students’ efforts in a pilot course he
taught in field research. Students of
Drs. Rob Naczi, Greg Dahlem, and Scott Lindner described their research on
pitcher plants and related species of mites.
Dr. Michael McPherson of the Physics and Geology Department at his
students described the work of he Acoustics Research Group. Drs. Jon Hastings, Judy Westrick, and Ray
Enzweiler introduced the campus faculty to the methods and content of the
Integrative Science course. Yvonne
Meichtry, Education, led a panel discussion on the environmental education
needs of northern Kentucky teachers
Guest speakers included Dr. Rex D. Ramsier of the University of Akron’s Department of Physics who discussed learning strategies and involving students in active-learning environments, critical thinking, and problem-solving tasks; Dr. Walter S. Smith, director of science and science education doctoral programs at Ball State University, who spoke on university-school cooperation in science education; Jane Eller of the Kentucky Environmental Education Council who discussed Kentucky’s master plan for improving environmental education and its effect on schools and teacher preparation; Carol Hanley from the Department of Education who discussed the State’s science standards; and Angie Annaballi of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base who discussed use of the Airborne Laser anti-missile weapon.
In our seminar series as well as with special speakers, we have invited successful women scientists, engineers, and mathematicians in an effort to encourage women from NKU as well as from our local schools to consider careers in science and mathematics.
Resources
The programs of CINSAM would not be possible without the involvement of many dedicated faculty from the Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Physics & Geology, Mathematics & Computer Science and the School of Education. The chairs of these departments along with the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences provide wise counsel and support for the programs of CINSAM. We work together to try to improve the infrastructure for science and mathematics on the NKU campus as well as in our region of the state.
The tenured and tenure track faculty of the University are augmented by a number of dedicated adjunct faculty who play an important role in helping CINSAM achieve its goals. Some of these, e.g. Dr. Judy Westrick and Dr. Greg Dahlem (Biological Sciences), Julia Bedell (Chemistry), and Beth Noblitt (Mathematics & Computer Science) have been involved directly in research or outreach projects supported by CINSAM. Several others are outstanding teachers who can undertake some of the teaching burden in place of faculty members who are reassigned to CINSAM-related programs. We appreciate the concern that the faculty has for the quality of teaching at NKU as well as the flexibility that the department chairs demonstrate in assigning faculty loads commensurate with responsibilities. We will continue to work with the chairs and the Dean to develop faculty resources that will support all of our programs to the highest quality level possible.
Scientific and computing equipment plays a major role in all the activities of CINSAM. New faculty members are provided with start-up funds to allow them to set up their offices and labs for effective work. Modest equipment funds have been given through the grants to faculty for research and outreach projects. For example, Dr. Larry Giesmann and his students use GPS equipment to identify the exact locations of the seeds of endangered native species that they collect for cryopreservation. Video microscopy units allow Dr. Dennis Lye’s teacher colleagues to present high quality microscopic images to all students in their high school classes.
Some equipment purchases have been planned to add to the ability of our departments to offer more effective instruction. For example, recent computer purchases have allowed the Computer Science program to offer their students opportunities to work on state-of-the-art equipment; upgrades of the microscope equipment in Biological Sciences add to the effectiveness of the Department’s programs; and both the Department of Physics &Geology Department and the Department of Chemistry have benefited from the upgrades to their laboratories. Equipment purchased for the School of Education’s Science and Mathematics Resource Center has been put to good use by NKU students as well as by teachers from local schools.
Operating funds from CINSAM also support many aspects of both research and outreach. Travel by faculty as well as students to meetings is supported, in some cases over and above the amounts requested in grant proposals (These meetings are listed later). Externship projects are supported by grants from the business or industry involved, often with a cost share by CINSAM. The Science and Mathematics Alliances run programs with CINSAM program support. Outreach activities such as the Silver Grove Science Camp and the Regional Science Fair are heavily subsidized by CINSAM. In addition to the undergraduate researchers and externship participants who are paid with CINSAM funds, a number of other student assistantships benefit both the students and the Departments gaining their services.
The resources that CINSAM is able to provide the faculty and Departments greatly enhance their abilities to serve our students and the greater community.
Bringing well-known speakers to campus and inviting other scientists, engineers, and mathematicians to visit is one step toward enhancing the reputation of the Center and the University. While anecdotal, all visitors seem pleased by the scope of programming on the campus related to science and mathematics. This is one simple means by which we will extend the reputation of the program.
The faculty members play an important role in establishing the program’s reputation through delivering lectures at meetings or encouraging their students to do so, and attending and participating in meetings.
The following list indicates strong activity in these areas:
4/04/01-04/07/01 62nd Annual Meeting of Association of
Southeastern Biologists (New Orleans, LA)-Dr. Jim Luken
03/25/01-03/28/01 National Association for Research in
Science Teaching 2001 Conference (St. Louis, MO)-Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
3/22/01-3/25/01 National Meeting of the National Science
Teacher’s Association (St. Louis, MO)-Dr. Tom Sproat
3/8/01-3/10/01 Kentucky
Teaching and Learning Conference (Louisville, KY) – Dr. Linda Sheffield
3/02/01-3/07/01 26th International Technical Conference on Coal Utilization & Fuel Systems (Clearwater, FL)-Dr. Judy Westrick
2/20/01 Assessing Gifted and Talented Children
International Seminar, Invited Presentation, (London, England) – Dr. Linda
Sheffield
2/22/01 Pre-conference three-hour workshop presented to the Kentucky
Association for Gifted Education Annual Conference, (Lexington, KY) – Dr. Linda
Sheffield
02/16/01-02/20/01 Annual American Association for Advancement of Sciences Meeting (San Francisco, CA)-Dr. Phillip Schmidt
1/18/01-1/20/01 Association for the Education of Teachers of Science (AETS) Annual Conference, (Costa Mesa, CA)-Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
01/18/01-01/21/01 Annual Conference of the Association for the Education of Teachers of Science (Costa Mesa, CA)-Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
12/01/00-12/02/00 86th Annual Kentucky Academy of Science (Lexington, KY)-Dr. Judy Westrick, and Dr. Rob Naczi
11/29/00 Pre-Conference six-hour credit session,
Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented Annual Professional Development
Conference for Educators and Parents – Dr. Linda Sheffield
11/11/00 Kentucky Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Lexington, KY, November
11, 2000 – Dr. Linda Sheffield and Dr.Valeria Amburgey
11/04/00-11/08/00 American Water Works Association Water Quality Technology Conference (Cincinnati, OH)-Dr. Judy Westrick
11/04/00 Annual Fall Meeting of the Kentucky Native Plant Society (Frankfort, KY)-Dr. Larry Giesmann
11/03/00 Kentucky Science Teachers Association Conference (Lexington, KY)-Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
10/23/00-10/24/00 Ohio River Basin Consortium Annual Meeting (Huntington, WV)-Dr. Judy Westrick & Dr. Miriam Steinitz-Kannan
10/06/00-10/08/00 Kentucky Association for Environmental
Education (Prestonburg, KY)-Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
8/2000 Chief Organizer of Working Group for Action, Ninth
International Congress on Mathematical Education, (Makuhari, Japan) – Dr.
Linda Sheffield
8/2000 Paper for Distribution, Ninth International Congress on Mathematical
Education, (Makuhari, Japan) – Dr. Linda Sheffield
6/2000 National American
Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Meeting - Diana McGill
5/2000 Central Regional ACS meeting, - Allen Easton and Diana McGill
04/04/01-04/07/01 62nd Annual Meeting of Association of Southeastern Biologists (New Orleans, LA)-Brian Dundas, Angela Thomas, Catherine Stoltz, Amy Seitz, Rebecca Thompson, Jennifer Gabbard, Mel Leap.
11/30/00-12/02/00 86th Annual Kentucky Academy of Science(Lexington, KY)-Rachel DiTrapani, Brian Dundas, Maureen Earley, Kevin Flerlage, Tonya Foree, Jennifer Gabbard, Kenny Jones, Mel Leap, Emily McElhinney, Catherine Stoltz, Amy Seitz, Livy Whitford, Michael Nickels, Michelle Barker, Ken Jones.
11/04/00 Annual Fall Meeting of the Kentucky Native Plant Society (Frankfort, KY)-Angela Thomas
Sheffield, L. J., Greenes, C., Findel, C., Gavin, M. K. (2000)
Awesome math problems for creative thinking, Alsip, IL:
Creative Publications. (Series of six books for students in grades three -
eight)
Sheffield, L. J. and Cruikshank, D. E. (2000). Teaching and learning
mathematics in elementary and middle school., Fourth Edition -
Updated. New York, NY: Wiley.
Sheffield, L. J. (Ed.) (1999) Developing mathematically promising
students. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics .
Sheffield, L. J. and Amburgey, V. A. (Fall 2000). "Teaching the Middle Grades Core Content through the Use of Physical Models, Graphing Calculators, and Computer Spreadsheets", Kentucky Journal for Teachers of Mathematics, 15 - 21.
NIH Bridges to the Baccalaureate proposal Mentoring Minority Students for Success in the Sciences was submitted in October 2000. This was a joint proposal among NKU and three Community Colleges –Jefferson CC in Louisville, Lexington CC in Lexington, and Sinclair CC in Dayton, OH, to create a program that focuses on assisting students from minority groups that area are under-represented in the sciences and mathematics. These students will be provided with summer research opportunities with NKU faculty and students and will be mentored; all to prepare them for the transition from community college into University work in the sciences and mathematics. This proposal is pending.
Oracle Corporation – a modest proposal was submitted in December to support the Silver Grove Science Camp. This proposal was submitted jointly with the Silver Grove Schools and is pending.
A joint proposal between NKU and
the University of Louisville for earmarked federal funding has been submitted
to Senator Mitch McConnell. This
project entitled Urban University Partners for Mathematics and Science
Teaching (U2PMAST ) emphasizes opportunities for teachers to
develop their skills in guided-inquiry, hands-on teaching of science and
mathematics. We have not yet heard
about this funding. The experience between
CINSAM and UL on the earmarked funds proposal will lead to other cooperative
ventures between these partners.
Drs. Miriam Kannan and Judy Westrick of the Department of
Biological Sciences submitted the proposal entitled Interdisciplinary summer
undergraduate research on the Ohio River: creating an environmental databaseof
biological, chemical and physical parameters to the National Council for
Undergraduate Research/Lancy Summer Scholars Program. There was a significant match of funds by CINSAM. The proposal was not funded.
Dr. James Luken of the Department of Biological Sciences submitted
the proposal entitled RUI: How does Flooding Open the Invasion Window?
to the NSF. This proposal carries
significant CINSAM matching funds. The
proposal is pending.
Reading
the River.(2001) $46,339.00.
Council on Post-Secondary Education
Eisenhower Program - Dr. Yvonne Meichtry
The Teaching, Learning, and Technology Project - United States Department of Education
(2000 - 2003), $1,118,060.00 – Dr. Valeria Amburgey and Dr. Linda Sheffield
Coordinating Probability and Statistics Concepts across Grades
Four through Nine, (2000
– 2001), $57,240, Council on Post-Secondary Education (Eisenhower Grant), Dr.
Linda Sheffield and Dr. Valeria Amburgey,
Students who have participated in regional and national conferences are Rachel DiTrapani, Brian Dundas, Maureen Earley, Kevin Flerlage, Tonya Foree, Jennifer Gabbard, Kenny Jones, Mel Leap, Emily McElhinney, Catherine Stoltz, Amy Seitz, Livy Whitford, Michael Nickels, Michelle Barker, Ken Jones, Rebecca Thompson, and
The following students have been recipients of CINSAM Scholarships. All have received full tuition ($2,733 – $2,913) , a book allowance ($500), and housing allowance ($933 – $1866) if they choose to live in the dormitory. They have all maintained high grades and most have distinguished themselves by demonstrating leadership in academics and student organizations: Douglas Baker, Thomas Bankemper, Michelle Barker, Brian Dundas, Sarah Graves, Westley Haggard, Katie Hartig, and Emmily Howard.
The following students have been involved in externships at the Newport Aquarium: Erica Ashcraft , Michelle Fry, Kerri Paddock, Lisa Ann Hampton, Michelle Lamping , Jennifer Ortlepp, and Bree-Ann Zibulka. Jason Crase, Melissa Mallery, Sarah Hoffman, and Sandy Beacham are all involved in externships with H&S Chemical Co. Inc. A total of thirty-four different students have served as research assistants, externs, laboratory assistants, or technical assistants with the support of CINSAM this year.
As can be seen from the earlier description of the program, the greatest areas of financial and academic development have been to provide students with opportunities to pursue research, to establish externships for students, and to support development of outreach to schools through a number of innovative programs. We have also used financial resources to improve the infrastructure for science and mathematics at NKU through the purchase of equipment.
Several financial and academic developments have been delayed. We have not yet hired an Outreach Coordinator, although with our current search we intend to have one begin by June 1, 2001. The impact has been that Dr. Schmidt is doing this job on a part-time basis and not as well as would be expected of an Outreach Coordinator. He has not been able to expend as much effort as he would like on industrial outreach and development of externships. Another setback has been the difficulty in hiring in all the areas targeted for CINSAM-supported faculty positions. Hopefully Mathematics & Computer Science will hire a person this year, Physics & Geology may be able to hire, and Chemistry will complete its search next year. The impact is that the Departments are not yet staffed at levels where faculty can comfortably support all the goals of center.
1) Operating for CINSAM-other than salaries
2) Capital Equipment to Researchers for Project Related Equipment
2000-12 $5,654.40
2000-13 $6,765.35
2000-15 $7,512.00
2000-17 $10,342.65
2000-19 $7,784.56
2000-21 $1,309.95
2000-24 $14,571.86
2000-28 $18,717.30
2000-29 $3,949.96
3) Personnel Expenses
A) Administrative
Budget-$73,522.00 Actual Spent-$65,531.80
B) Faculty
Budget-$242,352.00 Actual Spent-$178,524.64
C) Faculty Salaries (primarily summer, include stipends)
Budget-$54,648.00 Actual Spent-$54,647.77
D) Student Assistant Salaries
Budget-$23,467.00 Actual Spent-$23,466.68
1) Operating for CINSAM-other than salaries
Budget-$673,134.00 Actual Spent-$59,220.69
2) Capital Equipment to Departments for General Support of Science
Physics & Geology-$50,778.80
Biological Sciences-$148,102.28
Chemistry-$2864.10
3) Capital Equipment to Researchers for Project Related Equipment
2000-11 $710.00
2000-22 $832.00
2000-27 $795.00
2000-29 $1896.58
2001-01 $557.76
2001-05 $6269.00
4) Operating Equipment for Student Research-details include travel,
supplies, services, etc (non-personnel)
Budget Actual Spent
Travel $84,859.00 $84,593.38
Supplies $6,000.00 $21,129.81
5) Person