Education and Outreach Partnership for Researchers

 

K-12 Education Partnerships, Curriculum Development, and Outreach


Office for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Education Partnerships (OSEP)
Dean Grosshandler, Associate Director
Kemi Jona, Director
OSEP supports K-12 students and teachers by connecting them with the world-class science, technology, engineering, and mathematics resources of Northwestern University.

Society in Science (SS)
Michael Kennedy, Director
At Science in Society, we believe that science is fundamental, even "elemental" to our lives. Science affects us in many ways, from medical advances that touch our lives personally, to state and federal policy decisions concerning the environment or research regulations that impact our society at large.

Our goal is to make the community aware of the exciting research efforts at Northwestern University and across the world. We explore not only the science, but the legal, ethical, and even economic implications of research as well. We also offer a single access point to find science outreach events at Northwestern designed for the public, and we maintain a media library of past events, so you can enjoy lectures from the experts on your own computer, on your own time.

Northwestern University IT "Collaboratory Project"
Bob Davis , Director
The Collaboratory Project is a Northwestern University initiative that provides project consulting, training, technical advice, and Web-based resources and services to K-12 teachers and their students who are interested in using Internet technologies to advance education.

The Collaboratory is an easy-to-use, web-based collaborative environment that teachers use to develop project-based activities that are linked to Illinois Learning Standards.

Center for Talent Development (CTD)
Paula Olszewski-Kubilius, Director
The Center for talent Development (CTD) at Northwestern University is dedicated to identifying and developing students with exceptional ability in academic domains. we are proactive in aproviding a structure thatchallenges students through an advanced or enriched curriculum; creates an environment conducive to interaction with intellectual peers; motivates students to meet high standards of achievement and persist through difficulties and challenges; develops the general attributes students need to become successful adults.
CTD has served more than 350,000 families since 1981, providing a variety of learning alternatives for the gifted student. Led by nationally recognized scholar Paula Olszewski-Kubilius, PhD, CTD also conducts and publishes academic research on gifted students, particularly in the areas of accelerated learnig nd special populations of gifted learners.

Association for Women in Science Chicago Area Chapter Outreach Programming
Heather Behanna, President
The Association for Women in Science, Inc. (AWIS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to achieving equity and full participation of women in all areas of science, technology, and engineering. The Chicago Area Chapter of the Association for Women in Science was founded in 1978 as a local chapter of the national organization. Our national organization has over 5000 women scientists and other individuals who support women in science.The Chicago Area Chapter comprises over 200 people representing government, corporate, private, and academic institutions.

Undergraduate/Higher Education Science Education and Outreach

Northwestern Center for Engineering Education Research (NCEER)
Ann McKenna, Director
The Northwestern Center for Engineering Education Research (NCEER's) mission is to be a catalyst to transform engineering education locally, nationally, and globally. NCEER will build a community that conducts leading research on how to best educate engineering students as adaptive experts who can solve and anticipate global technological challenges. NCEER will support interdisciplinary research in engineering education, cultivating relationships within McCormick, across Northwestern, and with other universities with similar aims.

Searle Center for Teaching Excellence
Greg Light, Director
The mission of the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence is to promote and enhance learning within the university community by

  • Developing and advancing a broad range of services and programs to meet the needs of diverse learners and scholars
  • Providing resources and programs to assist faculty, graduate students, and others who teach with their professional development as educators
  • Enabling participants to implement approaches to teaching and learning through innovative experiences and opportunities
  • Promoting teaching practice that is grounded in scholarship
  • Evaluating programs and curricula, and providing recommendations for improvement and reform
  • Contributing to the literature on teaching and learning through scholarly research and program assessment

Adult/General Population Outreach and Community Engagement

School of Continuing Studies
Jack Clegg, Assistant Dean for External Affairs
The mission of the School of Continuing Studies (SCS) is to be the lifelong partner of adult learners who seek a superior educational experience at Northwestern University. SCS strives to be a national leader in continuing education by providing accessibility to learning and exceptional teaching to nontraditional students whose professional and personal obligations affect when and where they may achieve their educational goals. It is through academic excellence and the creation of diverse educational pathways that SCS serves the lifelong learning needs of its students.

Chicago Council for Science and Technology
Alan Schriesheim, Executive Director
Erin Dragotto, Coordinator
The Chicago Council for Science and Technology (C²ST) is an independent, nonprofit organization committed to promote science and technology by sponsoring discussions, programs and leadership dialogue among scientists, institutions and the public.

C²ST seeks to:

  • Be a voice for the scientific community in the metropolitan Chicago area, providing a forum for policy-oriented discussions among science and technology leaders and taking public policy stands on issues important to the scientific community, including the quality of science and mathematics education in public school systems in the metropolitan Chicago area.
  • Encourage the growth of the scientific community in the metropolitan Chicago area through the attraction of new science- and engineering-based industries, firms and institutions.
  • Enhance the public understanding and appreciation of science and technology through public discussions of emerging and important science and technology policy issues and educational programs about the state of scientific understanding on important areas of scientific and technical work.
  • Maintain a working relationship with the science journalism community in the metropolitan Chicago area, providing special briefings on selected emerging issues and providing a roster of scientific and engineering experts who would be available for media interviews.
  • Provide opportunities for members of the scientific community to meet each other and develop a greater sense of identity.

Illinois Science Council
Monica Metzler, Chair, Board of Directors
The Illinois Science Council was founded on the premise that an understanding of the scientific method and of scientific discoveries is crucial to a well-rounded civic life. Science enhances our appreciation of ourselves and of the world around us. Yet, once beyond the high school or college classroom, opportunities for exploring scientific ideas with actual practitioners are rare and hard to find. Science Council programs are intended to be an easy, inexpensive, and non-intimidating way to feed your inner curiosity.

The Council aims to bring science researchers and practitioners face to face with people who want to cultivate their innate curiosity about science – be it medicine, astronomy, botany, paleontology, or any other realm. In this way, the Council provides a forum for people to hear – and ask questions of – scientists about their interesting and important work.

Graduate Education and Research Training

Graduate School Training Grant Office
Ruth Allee, Director
The Training Grant Support Office (TGSO), established with the support of the Feinberg School of Medicine, the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, The Graduate School, and the Office of the Provost , this office provides support to graduate programs and faculty in the preparation of training grant proposals and renewal applications submitted to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), and other agencies. The focus is on training grants that support graduate student and post-doctoral fellow training, such as the NIH National Research Service Award Institutional Training Grants (NRSA T32) and the NSF Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT).