STEM Education and Outreach Center Winter Edion, 2016 The SOAR Club organized a visit from a class from Sion Elementary School to visit the UP campus to learn about Engineering. Big thanks to students from the SOAR Club, students from the Shiley School of Engineering, and Engineering professors Tim Doughty, Shazib Viglee, and Aziz Inan for hosng the grade school students! Students from Open School also came to campus for a visit. Once again the Shiley School of Engineering stepped up to the plate to introduce these students to the wonders of engineering. Special thanks to Khalid Khan for leading that group’s STEM visit! Visits to the UP Campus UP Gets a New Grant : Solar Thermal Energy University of Portland Shiley School of Engineering has received three separate grants totaling $45,000 for undergraduate student research projects dealing with environmental and sustainability issues. The research involves collaboraon with other schools and organizaons, and each project is funded by a $15,000 grant from the Oregon Alliance of Independent Colleges & Universi- es (The Alliance) and the Katherine Bisbee II Fund of the Oregon Community Foundaon. The grant’s funds are to be applied to projects that are easily discernable, have an element of creavity, and show a long-term benefit to the people and/or natural areas of Oregon. The first grant involves the second phase of a partnership with George Fox University and Portland General Electric (PGE), who last summer jointly did research on solar-thermal energy producon. The project, submied by UP engineering professor Heather Dillon, provided students and faculty with a “real world” challenge in terms of renewable energy science. Students and faculty developed an automac load control algorithm to control the electrical load based on variaons in local weather. The two universies worked together closely last summer and developed project paths that allowed both schools to end up with relevant laboratory data and experiments. George Fox engineering professor Chad Sllinger was a collaborator on the project, which received feedback from industry partner PGE. “I am thankful for the PGE team for engaging these young people in learning about energy systems and inspiring them to connue their educaon in this area,” said Kregg Arntson, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility and Execuve Director of PGE Foundaon. “Being more intenonal about connecng our Alliance scholars with the energy industry not only benefits the students in their educaonal pursuits, it helps us ensure we have a qualified pool of workers to sustain us into the future.” The STEM Center has had a busy semester, mostly filled with outreach acvies. We held our first on campus Family STEM Night in November. We were really pleased with the turnout. It was great to have so many of our students and faculty working with the local K-8 students and their families. The enthusiasm in Howard Hall was palpable! See this issue of the newsleer for more info and pictures. We also had two school groups (Sion Elementary and Open School) requesng individualized visits, which I am happy to say we were able to provide—mostly thanks to the faculty in the Shiley School of Engineering and the SOAR Club on campus! This semester the STEM Center is going to focus its aenon inward to see how we can beer serve our own UP students and outward to provide professional development opportunies for area teachers. We have several ideas in the hopper, but you’ll have to wait to our next edion to see what we did! Do remember to check our web site (hps://sites.up.edu/stem/) as Lloyd keeps it updated with news and grant opportunies for faculty, undergraduate students, and K-12 teachers! We hope you have been enjoying this rather mild winter and wish you a lovely start to spring! Patricia Morrell [email protected] An Introducon from the Director Family STEM Night and other Outreach Acvies Robert Butler Receives a Naonal Award Faculty Grants and Other news Pollena Update Newsleer Content University of Portland’s First On-Campus Family STEM Night: You may recall, the last newsleer had an arcle on Dr. Robert Butler winning the Neil Miner Award for his outstanding work in Geoscience educaon. That same skill and enthusiasm has been recognized by Western States Seismic Policy Council and Dr. Butler received an award for Educaonal Outreach to Schools. Dr. Butler has spearheaded the Cascadia Earthscope Earthquake and Tsunami Educaon Program (CEETEP), serving as their principal invesgator, and is also known for his engaging teaching style, long history with Earth Sciences, and his own textbook on Paleomagnesm. Pollentia Update Faculty Presentation Tisha Morrell and Julie Kalnin (both from the School of Educaon) presented a research paper at the Annual Internaonal Meeng of the Associaon for Science Teacher Educaon, in Reno, Nevada this past January. Their study examined the impact of a longitudinal professional development experience (PD) on changing identy through communies of pracce. The PD focused on climate change and followed a teacher as researcher model. The findings described the impact of parcipaon in the PD on both the teachers and the climate change sciensts involved in the project. On November 19th in the Howard Hall Gym, University of Port- land was delighted to hold an excing event for K-8 students and their parents to learn more about the possibilies of STEM educaon. Just under 140 school children accompanied by approximately 170 adults and family members were greeted by acvies put forward by an assortment of 100 UP students, club members, and faculty represenng the College of Arts and Sci- ences and Schools of Engineering, Nursing and Educaon. Among these were Dr. Robert Butler, winner of last year’s Neil Miner award for his work in Earth Sciences, who gave a fantasc presentaon on earthquakes, as well as Dr. Shazib Vijlee, whose students produced a perfect sine wave with a Ruben’s Tube. Kids went home with diffracon glasses, pencils, and squishy brains as our thanks for parcipang in the event. Dr. Robert Butler Recognized Again! Father Richard Rutherford (professor emeritus from Theology) had his arcle “The Adventure Connues: Update on the Pollena Expedion” published in the February 2016 issue of Catholic Cemetery. Also, the new video promong Pollena – Roman City is in the top posion on the Pollena Wordpress site: hps://sites.up.edu/pollena. If you haven't seen this short film, give yourself to a 2 minute treat and, if new to the site, scroll around a bit too for a more detailed share in the past two Pollena summers. If you are interested in parcipang in or supporng the 2016 Summer Expedion, please contact Father Rutherford ([email protected]) Grants for High-Needs Careers University of Portland, working with Impact NW and the Portland Metro STEM Partnership, has secured a $75,000 grant from Work Systems, Inc. The project, according to UP mathemacs professor Stephanie Salomone, includes wring curriculum to help prepare youth in Multnomah and Washington counes for four high-needs career pathways: infrastructure, manufacturing, informaon technology, and health care. The project will serve as a pilot program during the first year, and the goal of Work Systems, Inc. is to eventually make its curriculum available statewide. Work Systems, Inc. is a non-profit organizaon that pursues and invests resources to improve the quality of the workforce in the City of Portland, and Multnomah and Washington counes.