Los Alamos High School Students Advance to National Science Bowl
Students from Los Alamos High School (LAHS) took first place at the Northern New Mexico Regional Science Bowl on Saturday, March 3. Thirty-nine teams from around New Mexico competed in the 10-hour event at Albuquerque Academy. LAHS will represent New Mexico at the 22nd annual Department of Energy (DOE) National Science Bowl this month in Washington, D.C.
In addition to the opportunity to compete at the national level, the team also won $5,000 for their school.
The team consists of five students: Alexander Wang, Micha Ben-Naim, Scott Carlsten, Lorenzo Venneri, and Kevin Gao. Paolo Venneri was their coach.
Albuquerque Academy School and La Cueva High School (Albuquerque) placed second and third, respectively. Students had to respond to questions on a variety of topics, including astronomy, biology, chemistry, earth science, physics, math, trigonometry and calculus.
The Regional Science Bowl is coordinated by Sandia National Laboratories for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science and is co-sponsored by Los Alamos National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Security, LLC.
For more information, go to http://www.sandia.gov/ciim/ASK/hssciencebowl.html.
STEM Solutions Conference in Dallas June 27-29
Whether you’re interested in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education from the supply or demand side, best practices, or how policy could help prepare more students for high-tech careers, it’s time to mark your calendars for the U.S. News STEM Solutions 2012 conference. It is scheduled for June 27 to 29 in Dallas, Texas.
Right now in the United States there are three million unfilled STEM jobs, and they are projected to grow at a rate of 17 percent over the next 10 years (compared to 9.8 percent for non-STEM jobs). This conference will bring together major corporation representatives, educators, and policy makers to explore solutions to meet the country’s growing need for a STEM-based workforce.
Speakers for the conference include representatives from the Association for Career and Technical Education, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Lockheed Martin, National Urban League, U.S. News & World Report, and New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions.
For more information on the conference, go to http://usnewsstemsolutions.com/.
The conference is presented by U.S. News & World Report, STEMconnector, and Innovate+Educate.
American Indian Graduate Center Deadlines in May and June
You may qualify for funding from the American Indian Graduate Center if you meet all the eligibility requirements and application deadlines. Among other rules, all applicants must be pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree, be a full-time student, demonstrate financial need, and be a member of an American Indian tribe or have an Alaska native group affiliation. (See the applications for more information on eligibility requirements for the funding.)
Accenture American Indian Scholarship (Undergraduate)—Due May 11
Applicants must be seeking a degree and career in engineering, computer science, management, finance, marketing, or other business-oriented fields.
$10,000 per year for up to four years
American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) Fellowship—Due June 1
Requires a 500-word statement on applicants’ personal vision and goals and community contributions.
$1,000 to $5,000
Bureau of Indian Education—Loan for Service (Graduate)—Due June 1
Financial assistance in the form of loans.
$20,000 per academic year
Wells Fargo American Indian Scholarship (Undergrate/Graduate)—Due June 1
Applicants should be pursuing a career and degree in a field related to banking, resort management, gaming operations, management, or administration.
$1.000 to $5,000
To see a complete list of these opportunities and their full requirements, go to https://aigc.academicworks.com/.
For more information on the AIGA, go to http://www.aigcs.org/Home.aspx.
You may also send e-mail to followships@aigcs.org, or call 800-628-1920 (toll free) or (505) 881-4584.
Santa Fe’s Capshaw Middle School Wins Toyota Tapestry Grant
Over the past 21 years, Toyota has funded innovative, community-based science projects in environmental and physical science that integrate literacy and science. For its 2011 Tapestry Grant program, the company recognized Santa Fe Public Schools' Capshaw Middle School with a $10,000 award.
The winning project was titled “The Effects of Modern Food Production and Waste Disposal on Human and Ecological Health.” Its purpose was to analyze composted waste from the school’s cafeteria for petrochemicals and a common herbicide and try to determine their effects on local wild bird populations.
The Lab assisted the project with expertise from its Chemical Diagnostics and Engineering (C-CDE) group to help with the sampling. This work helped the students learn more about sample extraction, processing, instrumentation, and data analysis. Additional assistance from the Lab’s Biosecurity & Public Health group helped determine the health of the birds.
From the Lab, Robert M. Wingo, Stephen Trujillo, Claudine Armenta, Blossom Cordova, Charlotte Holland, April Longhair (all from C-CDE), and Jeanne Fair (Biosecurity and Public Health) helped the students, along with support from LANL’s Community Program Office.
Dawn Winters, a science teacher with the Middle School, headed up the project.
For a complete list of winners, go to http://www.nsta.org/pdfs/2011ToyotaTAPESTRYAwardees.pdf.