2007 ANNUAL REPORT - cosmos - Bowling Green State University

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REAL (Regents Environment Academy for Learning)
REAL provided an opportunity for high school students entering 11th and 12th grades to receive
college credit that may also fulfill high school requirements. This three-week residential summer
academy at Bowling Green State University provided 54 students the opportunity to study
environmental health science, biology, and chemistry concepts through a problem-based learning
framework that focused on real-world local issues. Upon successful completion of the academy
courses, students were eligible to earn an additional scholarship to take general education
distance-learning course in the fall of 2007. The recruiting brochure is included in Appendix N.
Dr. Chris Keil, Environmental Health Program at BGSU, is the Principal Investigator for the REAL
program. NWO/COSMOS played a significant role in grant development, building a collaborative
partnerships, among BGSU, OCC, and participating Ohio high schools. The program provided over
500 contact hours, with a cost of $12/contact hour.
RIPE (Research-based Inquiry Physics Experiences)
RIPE provided pk-3 teachers in northwest Ohio with training to transform early childhood education by
(a) researching early childhood student conceptual understanding of physics concepts, (b) developing
engaging and highly effective teaching models and instructional materials, (c) disseminating these
models and materials, and (d) providing intense and sustained professional development to pre- and
in-service teachers in effective physics teaching. The recruiting brochure is included in Appendix O.
Dr. Steven Van Hook, Physics Department at BGSU, is the Principal Investigator and Dr. Tracy
Huziak-Clark, School of Teaching and Learning at BGSU, is the co-Principal Investigator for the RIPE
program. COSMOS partnered with RIPE to provide release time for Dr. Tracy Huziak-Clark and helped
establish collaborative partners for this project. The program provided a total of 60 contact hours/year,
with a cost of $59/contact hour.
NWO TEAMS (Teachers Enhancing Achievement in Mathematics and Science)
NWO TEAMS is a collaborative partnership between three high-needs school districts (Toledo
Public Schools, Lima City Schools, and Fostoria Community Schools), suburban and rural school
districts, the Colleges of Arts and Sciences and Education at BGSU and UT. This Math and Science
Partnership (MSP) grant aims to increase the academic achievement of students of science and
mathematics by enhancing the content knowledge and teaching skills of classroom teachers. In its
second year of funding, NWO TEAMS served over 100 3-6 grade in-service teachers from around
northwest Ohio and over 45 pre-service teachers. Over 40 teachers in Cohort I of the program
completed a four-day follow-up held at BGSU from June 18-21, 2007, and 60 teachers began the
program as part of Cohort II by participating in an eight-day Summer Institute held June 25-July 3, 2007.
Twenty teachers from Cohort I and over 60 teachers from Cohort II will participate in the 2007-08
Academic Year Content Study Groups as a part of the aforementioned Inquiry Series. The quarterly
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