STAR Opening
Conference
STEM Teacher and Researcher
San José State University
June 19, 2015
Meeting Areas
Registration, Photos, Refreshments: Student Union Theatre Lobby
Morning Presentations: Student Union Theatre
Group Photos: Amphitheatre just outside theatre
Lunch: West Patio
The afternoon professional development program provides opportunities
for Fellows to participate in two of three workshop offerings:
-The Modeling Method of Instruction: Boccardo Business Center 21
-Coding in the Classroom: Boccardo Business Center 22
-Teacher Leadership: Student Union Theatre
Closing Remarks: Student Union Theatre
STAR Opening Conference
Welcome 2015 STAR Fellows! The STAR research experience is an intense period designed to help you develop your teacher-researcher identity, create new professional opportunities, and bring greater value to your
students and your career. Today’s conference presents the voices of your
Research Mentors, Education Mentors, and Alumni providing their advice
on how you can make the most out of your summer collaborations.
08:30 Registration & STAR Photos
09:30 Conference Opening & Welcome
09:45 STAR Staff Introductions
10:00 Research Mentor Perspectives
10:45 Workshop Leader Perspective and
Introductions
11:30 Alumni Perspective
Brian Paavo and
William Warmbrodt
Brian Paavo
Debbie Bard and
Jeff Corbett
DaNel Hogan
Erik McFarland
12:00 Group Photo & Funder Photos in
Amphitheatre
12:15 Light Lunch on the West Patio
13:15 Program Logistics
Brian Paavo
13:30 Breakout Session 1 for Fellows
Workshop Leaders Meet Separately
14:45 Transition Break
15:00 Breakout Session 2
16:00 Closing Remarks
John Keller
16:15 Program-wide Q&A
Open Floor
16:30 Conference Close
Presenters
Research Mentor
William Warmbrodt, PhD
Aeromechanics Chief, NASA Ames Research Center
Hailing from Los Angeles where he earned his BS,
MS, Engineering, and PhD degrees from UCLA, William went on to earn his MS at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. That experience helps him
effectively manage >20 scientists and engineers
conducting analytical and experimental research
in aeromechanics and flight controls at Ames. He has also been a big
supporter of educator-researcher partnerships. He supervises the 2015
Summer Aeromechanics Internship Program with more than 40 high
school, undergraduate, and graduate participants. He has also been the
Coordinator for Ames’ Native American Research Team Program for four
years. We welcome visiting members of his team here today!
Research Mentor
Debbie Bard, PhD
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC)
Debbie Bard has always been fascinated by the most
fundamental questions in science - What is everything made of? What kind of Universe do we live in?
She started her career in particle physics before
moving to work in cosmology where she is involved
in the upcoming Large Synoptic Survey Telescope.
Research Mentor
Jeff Corbett, PhD
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC)
Jeff Corbett has worked at SLAC for over 25 years
and has mentored STAR Fellows for the past seven
years. Projects explored by STAR Fellows have focused on optical beam diagnostics using visible light
emitted from a synchrotron facility. Recent projects
include a two-slit interferometer to measure beam size and characterization of the beam polarization state.
Workshop Leader
DaNel Hogan
Director of the STEMAZing Project
DaNel Hogan is the Director of The STEMAZing Project
at the Office of the Pima County School Superintendent in Tucson, Arizona. In this role, DaNel edits The
STEMAZing Newsletter highlighting trusted STEM resources and opportunities for educators. She also organizes and facilitates a wide range of STEM professional
development workshops and sessions. Before taking her current position,
DaNel served as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow at the U.S.
Department of Energy in Washington, DC. Prior to that, she taught physics,
physical science, and STEM research at the middle and high school levels for
nine schools in Arizona and Idaho.
STAR Alumnus
Erik McFarland
8th Grade Science Teacher, Tolt Middle School
Erik McFarland spent his first two STAR summers at
NASA JPL working on planetary protection. He student-taught in Helsinki, Finland, and now works as
an 8th grade science and tech teacher near Seattle.
This summer he is headed to one of STAR’s new lab
site partners, Biosphere 2, to do ecohydrology research. Erik recently grabbed headlines by taking his students on a virtual
field trip to a simulated Martian habitat at the University of North Dakota.
Where can you find out about...
Deadlines? Forms? Surveys? Roles in STAR? Travel Plans? Payments?
Poster Requirements?
There is a lot happening this summer! Almost all
of your Program questions can be answered by
the STAR website which is updated throughout the
summer. Look for the ‘2015 Program Info’ or ‘Key
Dates’ links at http://StarTeacherResearcher.org
Conference Workshops
The Modeling Method of Instruction
Colleen Megowan-Romanowicz, PhD
Executive Officer, American Modeling Teachers Association
This mini-course will provide a brief overview of the
development of Modeling Instruction and the teacher
community that uses it (numbering over 7,000). Participants will engage in a modeling paradigm lab just
as students might, participating in pre-lab discussion,
taking data, reporting group findings, and having a follow-up discussion.
Colleen provides a wealth of experience stemming from >20 years in high
school physics, followed by her work with David Hestenes, founder of the
Modeling Instruction Program. She received her PhD from Arizona State
University where she later accepted an Assistant Professor position in the
School of Educational Innovation and Teacher Preparation.
Coding in the Classroom
Jennifer Klay, PhD
Cal Poly Physics Department
Coding is an essential skill for 21st century learners.
Open source tools and programming languages with
simple and natural syntax provide one avenue to
bringing these skills to your classroom. Jennifer will
introduce participants to the Python programming
language using the IPython/Jupyter notebook. Participants will examine how to help students practice algorithmic thinking,
solve problems by working together, and use computers to solve problems that interest them. Useful resources for developing lessons and integrating coding into existing curricula will also be discussed.
Jennifer is an Associate Professor of Physics at Cal Poly San Luis
Obispo. She has worked with big data at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider
ALICE experiment for 14 years, unlocking secrets of the early Universe
by colliding heavy nuclei at the highest energies available on earth. She
has developed an introductory computational science course using the
IPython notebook to teach physical science data analysis and numerical
methods. She loves to code and wants everyone to realize that coding is
an key skill regardless of your field of study.
Teacher Leadership
Leslie O’Connor
Principal of San Luis Obispo High School
Through presentation and interaction, Leslie
O’Connor will help provide a pathway for success
in both your lab and your school. To excel amongst
our peers and innovate as educators, we each need
to cultivate our 21st century skills including creative
and critical thinking, clear and responsible communication and collaboration, scientific and numerical literacy, media literacy,
modern communication technology, productivity and accountability in a
social context. This workshop will help provide some real-world perspectives and also give participants an opportunity to ask a principal practical
questions outside of a job interview.
Lab Site Partners
The STAR summer research experience is not possible without the generous
support of our Lab Site Partners and the >50 Research Mentors involved this
year. Partners dedicate their valuable time, facilities, and materials to support their fellow STEM education professionals who prepare students for life
in the 21st century. This year’s participating partners are listed below.
STAR Staff
Executive Director
John Keller, PhD
Center for Excellence in STEM Education, Cal Poly
John Keller is an Associate Professor in Physics at
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He taught high school and
middle school science for eight years before completing his PhD in Planetary Science at the University of Arizona. In addition to STAR, he also coordinates a citizen science astronomy research effort to
measure trans-Neptunian objects involving over 50
schools across the western US (www.tnorecon.net).
Program Director
Brian Paavo, PhD
Center for Excellence in STEM Education, Cal Poly
Brian is a lecturer in the Biology Dept. at Cal Poly, SLO
and also works within the Center for Coastal Marine
Sciences. He has been involved in informal education
since 1997 in California, Hawai’i, and New Zealand
where he also pursued benthic ecology, marine environmental policy, and technical theatre studies.
Administrative Coordinator
Kaylene Wakeman
Center for Excellence in STEM Education, Cal Poly
Kaylene has been with STAR since its 2007 beginning. As part of CESAME since 2005, she has also
facilitated other programs including the Learn By
Doing Laboratory, Noyce Scholars Program, and the
Academy of Inquiry Based Learning. In addition to
loving her job, she enjoys music, traveling and outdoor adventures with her family.
Program Assistant
Zoë Sharp
Center for Excellence in STEM Education, Cal Poly
Zoë is a fourth-year Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo student. In the fall, she will be graduating with her B.S.
in Liberal Studies and plans to obtain her elementary education teaching credential after graduation.
Zoë will then start on her career-path as an elementary teacher. This summer, alongside her work with
the STAR Program, Zoe will be doing astronomy research and enjoying her remaining time in San Luis Obispo.
Workshop Leaders
STAR is very proud to provide each Fellow with over 45 hours of professional development opportunities working in small groups with experienced educators from some of the nation’s best universities, schools, and
education programs. Our Workshop Leaders’ primary goal is to help you
translate your research experience into classroom practices that help your
students and your career. Fellow teachers will expand their portfolio of
NGSS/CCSS classroom practices and discuss becoming teacher leaders.
New teachers will find Workshop Leaders to be valuable resources for the
critical early years of teaching and how to create research-learning environments. In your workshop you will explore:
Nature of STEM
How STEM research actually works
Becoming a researcher and gaining perspective on the diversity
of careers and skills on real research teams
K12 STEM education
NGSS/CCSS themes and practices
Creating research-learning environments in classrooms
STEM communication
Creating effective research presentations
Creating effective lesson plans
Professional development
Obtaining and succeeding in teaching positions
Staying connected to research and being a reflective teacher
Analise Eliot-Heid &
Yvonne Campos
(AFRL Palmdale / SLAC / RTC)
Steve Unterholzner &
Jennie Guzman
(LLNL / SNL)
Nancy Stauch & Ed Himelblau
(Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo)
Kristen Maxwell &
Katherine Rowley
(PNNL / LIGO)
Shealyn Malone & Seth Hornstein
(ESRL / NCAR)
(Santa Rosa Island / St. Croix /
CA Coastal Team)
Jean Pennycook & Robert Brewer
(CSU Fresno / CSU Sacramento)
DaNel Hogan & Dana Tomlinson
(NOAA SWFSC / Biosphere 2)
Greg Stoehr &
Chris McCarthy
(NASA Ames / SETI Institute)
Martin Mathews &
Elizabeth Nagy-Shadman
(JPL)
2015 Fellows
More than a hundred well-qualified aspiring and early-career teachers applied to
join STAR this summer. A total of 70 funded matches were made between applicants and Research Mentors. The Program appreciates the commitment that each
of you has made to be here today and the effort, dedication, and growth involved in
the coming summer experience. We hope you embrace your identity as something
different, a teacher-researcher, and ambassador of the STAR community.
Air Force Research Laboratory
* Madani Khan, Effect of Surface Oleophobicity on Drying by Forced Convection
Nick Rubel, Monte-Carlo Radiation Transport Model for Optical Beam Steering
NASA Ames Research Center
Matt Evers, NASA World Wind App Development
Audrey Fry, Microbial Mat Ecology
* Lindsay Nichols, Stability of In-flight Pharmaceuticals
Jamie Lyn Pacada, Adaptation and Survivability in Extreme Environments
Patrick Rice, Graphene for Nanotechnology-based Devices
Michelle Scire, Psychophysiology of Humans in Extreme Environments
* Krystle Sy, Development of Printing Techniques for In-Space Manufacturing
Natalie Wright, Wind-tunnel Aeromechanics of Rotorcraft
CSU Fresno
Stephen Freeman, San Joaquin River Dynamics
* Angeles Mora, Chemical Oxygen Demand Reduction in Wastewater
Magaly Perez, Climate Changes through Devonian Fossils and Sediments
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jessica DiMizio, Extraterrestrial Materials Simulation Lab
David Dombroski, Physical Characterization of Near-Earth Asteroids
Kristen Fahy, Exoplanet Characacterization
Allie Hernandez, Climate of the American West
Chun Huang, Supercritical CO2 Organic Extraction Study
Jennifer Jacobs, Microorganisms Associated with Mars-Bound Spacecraft
Ari Jefferson, Microorganisms Associated with Mars-Bound Spacecraft
* Kim Lykens, Habitability of Icy World Oceans, Especially Europa’s
* Mary Ellen O’Donnell, Mapping Open Water Bodies with Remote Sensing
Angie Rivera, Development of Mass Spectrometric Microbe Identification
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Brooke Butler, Isotopic Characterization of Aerated Tropical Forest Soils
Sandi Lavito, Laboratory Support of Orbiting X-ray Observatories
Katelynn Lee, The role of BMP-signals in post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA)
Jillian McCool, Validation of Osteoblasts and Osteoclast Enhancers
Gavin Schroter, Bovine coronavirus (BCoV) Nucleotide Changes with Epizoosis
NOAA SW Fisheries Science Center
* Lesley Anderson, Pacific Sea Turtle Population Structure
* Billy Hilton, Pacific Sea Turtle Population Structure
* Christina MacMillan, Genetic Tagging of Leatherback Sea Turtles
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Andrea Calderon Saucedo, Liquid Scintillation Counter Characterization.
Kolyne DeJesus, Chemical Mixture Methodology
Lauren Fletcher, Chemical Mixture Methodology
* Nathan Sweem, Analytical Visualization and Interface Tools
* Marcus Tubbs, Micro-kinetic Modeling of Glycerol Reactions
Romberg Tiburon Center
Andrea Fieber, European Green Crab Population in Northern California
* Carrie Fong, San Francisco Estuary Cnidarian Predators
* Caleb Shaw, Six-rayed Seastars as Sentinel Species
CSU Sacramento
Lisa Calhoun, Ecological Statistics
* Kristina Fuller, Catalytic and Regulatory Properties of E. coli Kinase Isoforms
* Jesse Heckendorf, Parental Investment in Convict Cichlids
* Korena Hendryx, Competition in Vernal Pools
Jorge Serrano, Biofilm Formation Disruption
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
David Guo, Contributions to the Neural Network Control of the LINAC
Amy Knowles, Mathematical Analysis of Polarized Synchrotron Radiation
* Michael Tee, Characterization of Reduced Zones of the Colorado River Basin.
Sandia National Laboratory
Carmen Clayton, Data Optimization for Computed Tomography
Sergio Palomo, Comparing Beta Backscatter & X-ray Fluorescence Methodologies
* Thien Vu-Nguyen, X-ray Accelerating Voltage Effects on Plate Density
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory
* David Hergesheimer, Seasonal Shifts of Arctic Ice
* Carrie Ann Sharitt, Alternative Practices Affecting non-CO2 Greenhouse Gas Emissions
* Lacee Sherman, Quantifying Halocarbons and Hydrocarbons in the Atmosphere
Laser Interferometry Gravity-wave Observatory
Ivan Alvarez, Noise Budgets for Gravitational Wave Detectors
* Margarita Vidrio, Calibration of Physical Environment Monitoring System
Biosphere 2
* Sarah Corrigan, Mineral Weathering, Soil Formation, and Carbon Sequestration
Justin Gay, Rainforest Project
* Erik McFarland, Interdisciplinary Climate & Ecosystem Research Project
Erica Oberg, Education & Outreach Research Project
CSU Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Dylan Benton, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Katie Grady, Cohort Identification by Size Distribution of Kellet’s Whelk
Jenny Greene, Cohort Identification by Size Distribution of Kellet’s Whelk
Deborah Kim, Microbial Reproduction in Dairy Products
Kristina Koster, Proteomic Responses to Environmental Stress
Andrea Reider, Proteomic Responses to Environmental Stress
Alex Vice, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
CSU Channel Islands
Matthew Jackson, Rare and Endangered Santa Rosa Island Plants
Michael Perez, Rare and Endangered Santa Rosa Island Plants
National Center Atmospheric Research
Kameron McCall, Wind Effect on Snowfall Estimations
SETI Institute
John Hironimus, OREOcube: Organics Exposure in Orbit
*STAR Alumnus
STAR by the Numbers
16:
70: 376:
495:
222:
30:
22:
21:
94:
1,420: Number of Fellows in 2007 (Pilot Year)
Number of Fellows in 2015
STAR Fellows since 2007
Research projects
Noyce Scholar STAR Fellows
Partner Lab Sites since 2007
CSU campuses produced STAR Fellows
States produced STAR Fellows
Non-CSU campuses produced STAR Fellows
Average monthly downloads of STAR research
posters from http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/star
(Actual humans! does not include auto-indexing sites)
Affecting thousands of STEM students nationally
Lab Site Coordinators
At each of our Partner Lab Sites there is a special person who starts working
on your summer research experience in September of the previous year. Lab
Site Coordinators locate the Research Mentors and opportunities which lie
at the heart of STAR, they navigate administrative challenges, identify candidates, help orient and train Fellows, and tirelessly support the STAR Program
at their site. Thank you Lab Site Coordinators!
Kriss Vanderhyde - AFRL Palmdale
Kevin Bonine - Biosphere 2
Cause Hanna - CSU Channel Islands
David Andrews & Mara Brady
CSU Fresno
Petra Kneissel-Milanian
NASA JPL
Ann Thorne - NOAA ESRL
Jessica Lipsky - NOAA SWFSC
Ann Wright-Mockler - PNNL
Diedre Sessoms - Sacramento State
Erin Blackwood - RTC
Joanna Albala - LLNL
Pamela Harman - SETI Institute
Dale Ingram - LIGO
Maria Mastrokyriakos - SLAC
Maricela Varma - NASA Ames
Bernice Mills - SNL
Scott Landolt - NCAR
Funding Partners
Each nine week STAR summer research experience is the result of a year
long effort by lab site researchers & staff, educators, STAR staff, fundraisers, grant officers, STAR recruiters, university faculty, and administrative, legal, financial, housing, and support staff! Every one of these people
worked to make this opportunity available to our STEM teachers. Our vision of teachers sharing what they learn in real-world research labs with
their students is most acutely held by the funders who financially supported your STAR summer experience.
We’ll take photos to send a thank-you on your behalf, but you may also
have an opportunity to thank funder representatives in person at the
closing conference.
National Science Foundation *
Chevron Corporation *
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
National Marine Sanctuary Foundation
S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation *
California State University System
*Asterisks indicate 100Kin10 Partners
STAR
(STEM Teacher and Researcher Program)
is administered by the
Center for Excellence in STEM Education (CESAME) at
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
on behalf of the California State University system.
We’re proud collaborators in the 100Kin10 movement
dedicated to enriching America’s classrooms with 100,000
excellent STEM teachers by 2021.