Let's Innovate Student Conference at the MSiC

Math Science Innovation Center's Let Innovate Conference for 6-8 Students

Program Overview

Discover the newest innovations in fisheries ecology, environmental sustainability, space exploration, computer coding, genetic research and more. Meet and talk with the scientists and professionals who are turning the possibilities of today into the realities of tomorrow. Become inspired to be an innovator!

Keynote: Jessica Bishop - Engineering a Medical Solution

Diseases can affect anyone and everyone - from your hair follicles to your feet. Some have cures while others do not.  What if you discovered you had a disease without a cure, what would you do?  Meet Jessica Bishop, a VCU graduate who had this happen and did something about it! Unsatisfied with the current options for treatment Jessica and her team took an idea and turned it into reality!

- Jessica Bishop, Nuclear Engineering Student

Jessica Bishop is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering. She is currently working towards her PhD in Nuclear Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with interests in research specifically related to nuclear materials, but also nuclear policy, non-proliferation, security, and safeguards. During her final year in her undergraduate career, she proposed an idea for a thermo-regulated glove to counteract the effects of Raynaud's disease. Her team now has a provisional patent on the technology in joint with Virginia Commonwealth University and are searching for industry sponsors to progress the technology into manufacturing. In her free time, she enjoys cycling and hiking, and just completed a 70 day cross-country bicycle tour from Yorktown, Virginia to San Francisco, California. 

 Additional program and registration information is available at: http://tinyurl.com/gktz6zx

Free NASA-related Programs for High School Students

The Virginia Space Grant Consortium recently sent the information below about free NASA-related programs for high school students interested in STEM.  Please take a moment to review and make students you know aware of the opportunities.  

The Virginia Space Grant Consortium would like to share the following information about the following FREE NASA-related programs for Virginia's high school students interested in STEM.
Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars (VASTS) is a NASA-based program for 11th grade students and STEM teachers who are interested in aerospace-related science, technology, engineering and/or math (STEM). This course focuses on space mission design and human space flight. Master Teacher positions are also available.
Virginia Earth Systems Science Scholars (VESSS) is a NASA-based program for 11th/12th grade students and STEM teachers who are interested in Earth Systems Science-related science, technology, engineering and/or math (STEM). This course focuses on Earth Systems Science and the NASA mission that help study these topics. Master Teacher positions are available.
Virginia Space Coast Scholars (VSCS) is a NASA-based STEM program for 10th grade students who are interested in NASA’s space, Earth, and airborne science-related missions managed by NASA Wallops Flight Facility. Master Teacher positions are available.

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For high school juniors, Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars (VASTS) is an interactive online learning course with a space mission design and human space flight theme, culminating in a one-week residential Summer Academy at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton for those students who qualify. Offered at no cost to the student, VASTS consists of eight modules and a final project to be completed from November 2016 through May 2017 under the guidance of licensed master educators. Based on success in the online coursework, students may be selected to attend a Summer Academy where they interact with NASA scientists, engineers and technologists to design a human mission to Mars. Students who successfully participate in VASTS can apply to earn 2 college credits for the online course and 2 additional credits for the Summer Academy.Please direct students or other faculty to the website for program information and application,http://vasts.spacegrant.org . The deadline for student applications is October 30th, 2016.
For more information on this program, please contact:
Ian Cawthray
VASTS Education Program Coordinator
ian.m.cawthray@nasa.gov
Or visit: http://vasts.spacegrant.org

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For High School juniors and seniors, Virginia Earth System Science Scholars (VESSS) is an interactive, on-line Earth System Science Course featuring NASA scientific research and data. The course will be offered for dual enrollment college credit (statewide through TNCC) for high school juniors and seniors beginning in spring semester 2016.By combining detailed Earth System Science content with real world data analysis, students will be exposed to a rigorous course that will work across science disciplines to cultivate 21st Century Learning Skills. The program will focus on preparing students for the rigors of college and careers while allowing them to develop strong science-based skills such as critical thinking and inquiry-based problem solving. VESSS will have two components. The first component is an online sixteen-week course running from December through April. The second component is a residential NASA Summer Academy at NASA Langley Research Center for students who perform well in the course. Students who successfully participate in VESSS can apply to earn 3 college credits for the online course and 1 additional credit for the Summer Academy.
Please direct students or other faculty to the website for program information and application,http://vsgc.odu.edu/VESSS/. The deadline for student applications is October 30th, 2016.
For more information on this program, please contact:
Joyce Corriere
VESSS Education Program Coordinator
Joyce.H.Corriere@nasa.gov
Or visit: http://vsgc.odu.edu/VESSS/

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For high school sophomores, the Virginia Space Coast Scholars (VSCS) is a program focusing on the earth and airborne science, engineering, and technology integral to current missions at NASA Wallops Flight Facility and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. This dynamic (and FREE) program, designed by the Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC), inspires students who possess technical and/or scientific interests and are motivated to learn about the many different opportunities that NASA offers.The VSCS program features two key elements: 1.) an on-line science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning experience featuring five modules; and 2.) a seven-day residential Summer Academy at NASA Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, VA where selected scholars will learn first-hand from NASA professionals about cutting edge technologies and missions. Program Information:

• FREE Program for 10^th Grade Students
• Online modules covering NASA aircraft, balloon, and sounding rocket missionslaunched or managed at Wallops Flight Facility
• Online course runs from December 2016 through April 2017
• Highly successful students will be selected for a week long Summer Academy at NASA Wallops Flight Facility (Chincoteague, VA)
• The deadline for student applications is October 30th, 2016
• http://vscs.spacegrant.org/ for application and more information

For more information, please contact Kirsten Manning, Education Program Coordinator, atkmanning@odu.edu. 

Focusing on the Future at the College of William & Mary

The Center for Gifted Education is accepting registrations for the Fall 2016
Saturday Enrichment Program (SEP). 

SEP is an academically challenging program with an emphasis on inquiry-based
learning for students enrolled in grades K–9. It is not meant to supplant the
regular school curriculum; rather, it recognizes the importance of allowing
able students to explore additional specialized areas of science, mathematics,
humanities, and the arts.

The program’s brochure is accessible through the Center’s website at
http://education.wm.edu/centers/cfge/precollegiate/sep/index.php. If you have
any questions, contact the CFGE office at (757) 221-2166 or sep@wm.edu.

Gifted Advisory Meetings, 2016-17

All Colonial Heights Gifted Advisory meetings will take place in the Audio Visual Room at the Technical Center.  Meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. and will take place on the following dates:

Monday, Oct. 17
Tuesday, Jan. 17
Tuesday, Mar. 14
April TBD