FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 14, 2010
Danielle McNamara
(510) 987-0230
Press Release
More than 220 California educators who work with students from educationally disadvantaged backgrounds will gather in San Ramon this weekend to learn hands-on math and science activities and explore ways to excite students about these fields.
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education Eduardo Ochoa will address the teachers Friday during the opening session at 9 a.m. Ochoa, who was newly appointed by President Obama, was a professor and vice president for Academic Affairs at Sonoma State University.
The event, MESA Academy for Science and Mathematics Educators (MASME), features almost 40 workshops on topics as diverse as using the Rubiks cube as a teaching tool, robotics with sumo wrestling and tug of war tasks, and balsa wood gliders.
Most of the workshops will be held Friday and Saturday, July 30 – 31 at the San Ramon Valley Conference Center, 3301 Crow Canyon Road, San Ramon.
Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of public instruction, will also speak at an awards dinner for teachers on Friday, July 30 at 6 p.m. Assembly member Joan Buchanan will present a special legislative award to MESA at the dinner.
The MASME conference provides fresh ways for teachers to connect math and science theory to hands-on practices that will energize students. MASME offers best practices and cutting-edge approaches developed by educators and industry, so that MESA teachers can see and try out new classroom activities and projects.
The conference is sponsored by Symantec. Intel, 3M, PG&E, Texas Instruments, Northrop Grumman, Marriott of San Ramon, the Blackhawk Museum and Science Buddies also provided support.
Now celebrating its 40th anniversary, California Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) has served as a national model for academically preparing disadvantaged students to excel in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, go to college and graduate. MESA provides academic support to 14,000 pre-college students across the state. MESA also operates programs at community colleges and universities.