UMPI professor only state delegate at technology conference in D.C.

     A University of Maine at Presque Isle professor was afforded a distinct honor after he was selected to serve as the only person from Maine to attend a major national conference held recently in Washington, D.C.     Dr. Chunzeng Wang, assistant professor of earth and environmental science, was the single representative from Maine who participated in the STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] Summit organized by the Federal Department of Education and the National Science Foundation.
    The national summit – which took place Dec. 11-12 and included addresses from DOE and NSF administrators, keynote presentations, and panel and group discussions – was the first of its kind to be held in the U.S. The purpose of the summit was to allow mathematicians, scientists and engineering faculty members from higher education institutions around the nation to share strategies for promoting student success in math and science from the elementary to the undergraduate levels.
    Wang was nominated to represent all Maine higher education institutions by the Maine Department of Education due to his involvement with the Central Aroostook Math and Science Partnership. Through the partnership, which is administered by the Central Aroostook Council on Education [CACE], Wang and GIS specialist Burt Pelletier have conducted hands-on workshops and projects that bring GPS and GIS technologies into local high school classrooms. Wang had the opportunity to share his experiences in working with K-12 teachers and students during the summit.
    Among the topics covered during the summit were approaches to working with K-12 teachers to deepen their scientific and mathematical content knowledge, so that they can be increasingly effective in working with their students, as well as providing incentives to STEM faculty for the work they do with K-12 teachers.
    Officials hope to use the ideas generated during the conference to chart a course for furthering national efforts to engage STEM faculty in working to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics, science and engineering for all students.