National Institutes of Health (NIH) Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA)
by the SFSU SEPAL: The Science Education Partnership and Assessment Laboratory
Spectrum:
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Building Pathways to Biomedical
Research Careers for Girls and Women
of Color
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Participant Activities
Activities Related to Working with Middle and High School Girls
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Spectrum Science Partners will spend approximately 6-8 hours per month planning and doing
science clubs for girls with their team. Teams will plan and teach 8 science clubs over the
course of the school year from September 2008 to May 2009.
Spectrum Science Partners will enroll in two semesters of Sci 750 (Fall)/Sci 850 (Spring): An
Introduction to Science Education, Pedagogy and Partnership. These seminar courses are
graded, 2-units each, GAP-eligible and introduce Spectrum Science Partners to issues of
partnership, pedagogy, lesson planning, assessment, classroom equity, and literature in the field
of science education. Sci 750 and Sci 850 meet Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 PM. Spectrum
Science Partners will also receive 2-units of non-graded credit (Sci 751/Sci 851) in conjunction
with their fieldwork in classrooms.
Spectrum Science Partners will co-host a Family Science Night event where they’ll coach and
support the girls in sharing the science they have learned to their families.
Activities Related to Spectrum Mentoring Community
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Spectrum Science Partners will attend semi-monthly Spectrum Community Gatherings held on
Tuesdays from 4:30 – 6:30 PM (6 meetings over the course of the school year). A primary goal
of these gatherings is to develop a mentoring community of role models composed of SFSU
undergraduate and graduate students, alumna, and SFSU women of color faculty and middle
and high school science teachers. These meetings will also provide an opportunity for Spectrum
teams to share the lessons they have co-planned and co-taught at their science clubs with the
Spectrum community.
Spectrum Science Partners will attend a 1-day Mentoring Orientation, tentatively scheduled for
Monday, August 4th, 2008, in which Spectrum Science Partners and SFSU women of color
faculty share their stories and explore issues of effective role modeling and mentoring.
Spectrum Science Partners also attend a 2-day Partnership Orientation, tentatively scheduled
for Tuesday, August 13th and Wednesday, August 14th, 2008, in which they meet their teacher
partners, explore inquiry-based science learning, learn more about project goals and resources,
and begin planning science club activities for the year.
At the end of the year, each Spectrum team will present a formal poster on their Spectrum
experiences at the SFSU COSE Student Poster Showcase.
In addition to the academic credit received for enrolling in Sci 750 and
Sci 850, Spectrum Science Partners will receive a $1,000 honorarium for
their efforts in the 2008-09 academic year.