Non-NESTA Professional Development Opportunities

Numerous organizations offer professional development opportunities for Earth and Space science educators throughout the year. The list below provides information about a number of these opportunities. The descriptions below come from the programs' websites so be sure to click on the URL for all the details concerning application deadlines and a more in-depth program description.

If you have a professional development opportunity that you would like to have listed here, please post the opportunity.

Predicting Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions: What Can and Can Not Now Be Done?

Dr. Stephen Malone, 2010 IRIS/SSA Distinguished Lecturer, University of Washington

The 2010 Thacher Environmental Research Contest, an activity of the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies, awards cash prizes to secondary school students (grades 9-12) whose projects demonstrate the best use of satellites and other geospatial technologies or data to study Earth. See website for more information.

Register today for the 16th Annual Space Exploration Educators Conference, to be held Feb. 4-6, 2010, at Space Center Houston. This conference is for all K-12 educators. Activities presented use space-related themes to teach across the curriculum and can be used for science, language arts, mathematics, history and more.

Arlington, Va.--There's still time for U.S. formal (K-12 and college) and informal educators to submit their best examples of using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in science, technology, engineering or mathematics education. The next deadline for entry into the NASA-sponsored "Top Stars" contest is Feb. 28, 2010.

News Flash to Students! Student groups and clubs are invited to submit a proposal to exhibit as part of the two-day Expo on the National Mall. A limited number of $250 grants are available to student groups to help offset the cost of materials for developing their exhibit. To win a grant, each school must submit a brief proposal describing the planned exhibit and how funds will be used.

Eyes in the Sky II is a long-term professional development program that prepares high school science teachers to use NASA data and visualizations along with other geospatial information technologies. Throughout the program, teachers and students investigate both global and local environmental issues.

An intensive, yet fun, summer training course that provides K-12 teachers of all disciplines with a comprehensive overview of all phases of the minerals, aggregates, industrial minerals, and solid fuels industries. During the past 41 years, 1,493 teachers have completed this flagship course at the Colorado School of Mines.

Here's a summer opportunity for educators:
IPY STEM Polar Connections: Summer 2010 Institute

Summer 2010 Institute, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 12-16 July 2010;

Application Deadline: 1 April 2010

The 4th International Polar Year (IPY) ran from March 2007 to March 2009,
and focused international scientific and educational attention on the
Earth's Polar Regions.

Monday, 11 January 2010 - Live from IPY! with Heidi Roop and the team at WAIS Divide, Antarctica Event starts at 9AM Alaska Standard Time [10AM PST, 11AM MST, 12PM CST, 1PM EST].

Read more about the ice drilling project at:
http://www.polartrec.com/ice-core-drilling-in-west-antarctica

To learn more and/or to register, go here:
http://www.polartrec.com/live-from-ipy/registration

Wednesday, 6 January 2010 - Live from IPY! with Sarah Diers and the DOM team from McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Event starts at 9AM Alaska Standard Time [10AM PST, 11AM MST, 12PM CST, 1PM EST].

Read more about this expedition and the science at:
http://www.polartrec.com/dissolved-organic-matter-in-antarctica

If you teach Earth science to students between kindergarten and eighth grade, you may be eligible to apply for the Edward C. Roy, Jr. Award for Excellence in K-8 Earth Science Teaching. Each year, this award recognizes one full-time U.S.

Conservation and Camaraderie along the Sea of Cortez

Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) and Green Edventures invite adult women of all ages and backgrounds to explore Baja California Sur above and below the waterline.

IPY STEM Polar Connections: Summer 2010 Institute

Summer 2010 Institute, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 12-16 July 2010;

Application Deadline: 1 April 2010

The 4th International Polar Year (IPY) ran from March 2007 to March 2009, and focused international scientific and educational attention on the Earth's Polar Regions.