| NSF Org: |
DUE Division Of Undergraduate Education |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | September 10, 2012 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | June 27, 2014 |
| Award Number: | 1205050 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Tom Higgins
DUE Division Of Undergraduate Education EHR Direct For Education and Human Resources |
| Start Date: | September 15, 2012 |
| End Date: | August 31, 2015 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $651,249.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $651,249.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2013 = $186,200.00 FY 2014 = $174,624.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
11400 Robinwood Drive Hagerstown MD US 21742-6514 (301)790-2800 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
11400 Robinwood Dr Hagerstown MD US 21742-6514 |
| Primary Place of Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | Advanced Tech Education Prog |
| Primary Program Source: |
0413 NSF Education & Human Resource 0414 NSF Education & Human Resource |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.076 |
ABSTRACT
In response to regional workforce needs, Hagerstown Community College is creating a biotechnology microscopy training center for education on the use of bright field, phase contrast, and fluorescence microscopy with digital imaging capabilities, in collaboration with local biotechnology industries, government laboratories and higher education partners. Two biotechnology courses are being created to strengthen the college's biotechnology program and existing biology courses are being updated with new protocols, developing options for entry into biotechnology employment, including internships. Broader impacts include educational outreach through mobile microscopy training for elementary, middle, and high school students, as well as professional development opportunities for area K-12 teachers, including summer workshops and in-service day activities.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Hagerstown Community College’s Microscopy Training Hub
HCC’s Microscopy Training Hub was funded by a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education grant (#1205050). Our goal was to enhance STEM education and literacy through providing resources and support for incorporating microscopy into the K-14 classroom and beyond. It included an onsite microscopy training suite, summer workshops for K-12 teachers, a summer institute for advanced high school students, summer programs for elementary and middle school students, and an extensive K-12 outreach program. Our program also serves as a model for anyone interested in creating a partnership between higher education and their local K-12 communities. For more information, see www.hagerstowncc.edu/microscopy.
On Campus Microscopy Center:
The Microscopy Training Hub center is located in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics building and Advanced Technology Center at HCC and is used by HCC’s faculty and students as well as available to host field trips for local high school and undergraduate students.
We are equipped with:
- Fluorescence microscopes with digital imaging
- Research-grade stereo dissecting microscopes
- Compound light microscopes with phase contrast
- Portable digital imaging systems to be used with the Center’s equipment or with other microscopes
We provide:
- Microscopy training and support to help faculty incorporate microscopy into their classes
- On-site and in-classroom microscopy skills tutoring for students
- Staff-led microscopy lessons for students and for non-HCC students visiting the facility
- Microscopy video series to support microscope use in the classroom
Mobile Microscopy Training Hub:
Over 20 different hands-on, inquiry-based science lessons designed to help pK-12 students learn how to use magnifying tools to explore the microscopic world around them. Students ask questions, form hypotheses, gather and record data, and come to evidence-based conclusions. Lessons were developed with the help of over 5,000 local students and their teachers, and are aligned with Maryland State Science Standards. Many lessons, along with teacher guides and supplies lists are available for download for free from our website.
Teacher Summer Institutes:
One-week summer workshops for K-12 Teachers in which teachers enhanced their content knowledge and learned how to use microscopy to explore the content with their students. Each teacher created a lesson plan to bring back to the classroom.
Participants had the option to earn 3 graduate credits from Frostburg State University with concurrent registration. Teachers also received a stipend for each week.
In addition to workshops focused on integrating basic microscopy skills into the K-12 classroom, the following were offered over the course of the grant:
- Microscopy for Microbiology: Microscale and Nanoscale Science and the Environment.
- Microscopy for Microbiology: Emerging and Re-emerging Infections Diseases and Human Health Issues.
- Microscopy & Microlife: Studying Microscopy Organisms in the Elementary Classroom
- Microscopy & Microlife: Exploring Impacts of Climate Change on Microscopic Organisms
College for Kids:
Two, one-week summer camps for elementary and middle school students focused on microscopy.
- In Fossils and the Sands of Time, elementary school students make egg geodes, examine fossils & sands from around the world under the microscope, create insects in resi...
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