Slesnick STEM Symposium is April 24 on campus

On Friday, April 24, Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Program will host the Irwin L. Slesnick STEM Education Symposium in the Science Lecture building. The symposium, which is open to all students and faculty, will focus on different aspects of of science, technology, engineering and mathematics education.

There will be three featured speakers, a student panel and an ending reception. The speakers include Rachel Beattie, the director of Productive Persistence at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, who will be talking about the program. Mary Pat Wenderoth, principal lecturer in the Department of Biology at the University of Washington, will be discussing different forms of effective learning practices. Hannah Jordt, a current Ph.D. student in the Biology Department of the University of Washington, will be discussing educational interventions to close the achievement gap in STEM.

This symposium and other events like it were made possible by the Irwin L. Slesnick STEM Education Fund, according to an email from Lori Torres, assistant to the SMATE director. The endowment in his name was set up in honor of Slesnick after he passed away in order to promote interest and understanding in STEM education research and effective teaching and learning strategies through workshops and talks.