OPAS Motivate Workgroup

Focal Strategy

Increase students' interest and knowledge of engineering and applied science opportunities

Increase the presence of STEM-knowledgeable volunteers in the classroom by identifying and overcoming barriers to volunteers' participation
Increase the connections between businesses and educators by targeted recruitment
Increase the resources and synergies among STEM education providers by collaborating with NOISE (Network of Informal STEM Educators).

Action Items cumulative updates last emailed and posted November 21

Review the Legislative Concepts document - Summary Document, November 6
Cast your ballot - Ballot in the form of a computer survey
To get the recruiting results we got last time from the NEM post-participation survey, we need to work on the menu of additional volunteer opportunities. Should these be more than ORTOP, NWSE, NEM, and Saturday Academy? What should the verbiage be?

(Jo)

Brief on STEM centers.
Work on hanging AIs
Re-work verbiage on the Phase Model Conceptual Framework for better alignment with educator terminology, submit to Ryan for review.
Incorporate Ben’s edits into the volunteer survey and ask Marcie Benne at OMSI for a review (done).
Email Ben an electronic list of NOISE_members listserv addresses (done).
When Ben has the cross-check, send out targeted emails inviting updates to the TSS.
Follow-up with Amanda Thomas at OMSI on NOISE homepage issues via more than a lone email (phone message and email message 11/21/07 5:00 pm)
Distribute NEM sign-ups when ready (educators done)

Ben –
- cross-check who is on the NOISE_members listserv who is not on the TSS? Who is on but may be in need of updates? Get the results to Jo.
- Contact the Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce (re: School to Work)
- Continue to cultivate IEEE
(Eileen) Summary notes of business subgroup from June Meeting to Jo.
(Eileen/ Mary Beth/ Joyce) Frameworks for presentations/activities for National Engineers’ Month (ongoing - mostly delegated to Stephanie Lambert?)
(Jo/Ben/Ray) Finish volunteers’ survey instrument with OMSI; distribute to OMSI volunteers if possible.
(Jo/Ben/Ray/Ryan) NOISE monitoring, possibilities, including Jo to connect with noise@omsi.edu about “sign up” process for the listserv. (done 2nd time? 10/5/07 - still no action - done 3rd time - 11/21/07)
(Jo/Ryan) work on a coherent statement of possibilities of structuring a matchmaking or clearinghouse service or workshop for Broader Impact and Outreach opportunities on NSF grants.
Don – follow up on BEC sabbatical discussions
Mary Beth -
- update on setting up internships through government agencies

Agenda - #14 - June 5, 2008

Meeting Objective	Define the key components of an Engineering Challenge Pilot proposal
4:00 - 4:05	Meet and greet
4:05 - 4:55	Key goals/learnings of the Pilot proposal Does an Engineering Challenge program, based key components of after school athletic programs, work? Will school districts pick up the full cost after seed funding runs out? Will head engineering coaches be sufficiently motivated to become champions for Engineering Programs at local schools? Is there a sufficient pool of interested and qualified candidates to become engineering coaches? Program attracts sufficient student interest Does the program provide a follow-on to FLL teams? Students are able to commit the time needed to fully participate in an engineering challenge Do participating students receive more scholarship dollars? Can the pilot program be scaled to a full seed program? Are there major differences in how the program is run for different Urban/Rural, Large/Small, Public/Private schools? What is the cost of the full seed program? What is a good cost split model between seed funds and school district funds? What is the time commitment for coaches/students/parents/administration? When is the best time to run challenges? Fall/Winter/Spring/Summer? How long should a "challenge season" last? How should the ETIC seed program be administered? Existing organization e.g. Tech Start Foundation, or OPAS? New Administrative How much coach training is required? Will outside school time program motivate non-school based teams? (This happens with athletics, e.g. swim teams, soccer) How should the challenges be administered, by current organizations, or should schools (or Universities) assume this responsibility? (What does the athletic model suggest?) Lean more about the available Engineering Challenges to determine if the seed program should focus on a limited set? FIRSTTech Challenge (FTC) OGPC (Oregon Game Project Challenge?) InvenTeams IEEE's Design Challenge JETS FIRST Robotic Challenge (FRC)
4:55-5:20	Selecting the Pilot Schools What are the key drivers of the selection process? Pick a cost target, then include up to that many schools? Base selection on key learnings (Urban/rural/small/large/private/public) Model if after what we want to use for the full seed program Mechanics of selection process We target specific schools Ask schools to submit proposals Ask a set of schools to submit proposals How should the costs be split between school & seed funding for Pilot? What the requirements a school must meet to qualify for pilot program How closely should we tie the pilot to schools with current PLTW programs?
5:20 - 5:50	Coaches Who sets the stipends? (Principal, mandated by the pilot program, guidelines, e.g. competitive with athletic stipends) Does anyone already get paid? What does athletics spend? What is the FFA, Band, Annual, Speech Team, etc. models and how much are those stipends? Who gets paid in athletics? How do assistant coaches work? What is an Athletic Director? How much time during school is assigned to their function? What is OSAA and what is the budget for it? http://www.osaa.org/osaainfo/ What do schools spend for the athletic program? Are additional costs covered by families, boosters, fundraising? How are engineering coaches selected? School administrations may not know what to look for. What are the qualifications? What training is needed? Who provides it? Does Pilot include Head coaches and assistant coaches at same school?
5:50 - 6:05	Dinner service
6:05 - 6:30	Students & Parents How are students recruited, motivated to participate? Gaining parent support Encouraging their student Financial support for transportation and out of town competition fees How do you organize a parent support group? Should pilot program contain an "Engineering Letter" for the student?
6:30 - 7:00	Challenges Head-to-head team competition (Robot wars) vs. engineering/design component (InvenTeam, JETS) vs. Scored Performance (FLL) Any changes needed to Support Challenge Program What are the competitions available? How much time does it take to prepare for a competition? How much does it cost to enter a competition? What is the state of those entering competitions now? How do the teams get to be part of the all school sports assemblies that are held several times a year to recognize students on sports teams?
7:00 - 7:30	Metrics to Collect Contact hours Testimonies (Coaches, Parents, Students, Principal ...) What is the actual costs per student contact hour, or is there a better cost metric? Will schools agreee to sustain the program? Where will the sustainable dollars come from? Impacts to other Out-of-School-Time programs? What existing OST programs give up time to add engineering competitions? University scholarship dollars - especially for students receiving a letter in engineering Will engineering colleges "scout" for students at the competitions?
7:30 - 7:55	Administration & Logistics Funding sources for Pilot (Challenge Programs, Foundations, Universities, School Districts themselves) When should we target the Pilot? Time line for completing Pilot proposal/getting funding/selecting schools/holding competitions How many years should the Pilot run? Should student scholarships be offered directly - or through the engineering challenges
7:55 - 8:00	Next Meeting - Wednesday, July 9, 3:30 - 5:00? Items for the Agenda?

Working Documents

Volunteer Questionnaire- Draft March 12, 2007	OPAS White Paper: Fostering STEM Diversity
Web based Volunter Survey - May 4, 2007 supercedes previous version	Professional Organizations' Events .xls - 031507 amendments to Jo, please
Brainstorming Legislative Concepts - 090707	Blank Word Document with OPAS logo
OPAS Summary of Strategy - August 2007	Funding Analysis Worksheet for the Steering Committee - blank - draft 042007
Volunteer Survey - January 18, 2008 supercedes previous versions	Raw notes from January 30, 2008 Worksession
	Key Points for the ETIC Proposal - Post-Meeting, February 14

Roster

Co-Chair Ben Manny	Retired from Intel R & D	Ben is an enthusiastic UT Austin alumni with a passion for education. He also volunteers for NOISE, the Network of Informal STEM Educators, and at Hilhi where he mentored an InvenTeam (funded by the Lemelson Foundation) working on a heads-up display for cars.
Co-chair Eileen Boerger	VP and General Manager, Agilis Solutions	Eileen is a member of ETIC, and has a long history of educational activism. She led the first several "Take Your Daughter to Work" days at Mentor Graphics. She's also an enthusiastic UT Austin alum.
Ryan Collay	Programming and Evaluation Coordinator	Ryan joined us for ETIC day at the Capital with a large metal robot. He's responsible for creating the events and materials that keep SMILE kids excited about STEM.
David Coronado	Director, MESA (Math Engineering Science Achievement) PSU	David is working on a Pre-Engineering Conference for MESA students and their families at PSU on April 14.
Joyce Cresswell	Executive Director, Saturday Academy	Joyce came to the OPAS Strategic Planning Summit in 2005 and worked on Best Practices, and then spent some time with the Marketing Committee in 2006. Lately, she's been establishing Saturday Academy as an independent non-profit, but found time to attend the NOISE kickoff conference.
Don Domes	PTE Teacher, Hillsboro High School	Don is a passionate advocate of hands-on education, and changing the system through grass roots activism. He's coached LEGO Robotics, and this year has a Lemelson InvenTeam.
Endi Hartigan	Communications and Administrative Coordinator, OUS Office of the Chancellor	Endi 's background is in writing, and she is an active part of OUS communications team supporting OPAS. She is dedicated and resourceful administrator whose time and ingenuity has benefitted the initiative.
Mary Beth Horton	Deputy Director, BEC (Business Education Compact)	Mary Beth is enthusiastic about the synergies between the missions of BEC and OPAS. She has been working on the NOISE planning committee.
Bill Lesh	Principal, The Center for Advanced Learning	Bill is an enthusiastic champion for close involvement between schools and business. He is also a caring principal who attends his students' major events, such as the First Robotics Regional Competition in March.
Valeree Lane	Director of Public Affairs, OIT	Valeree was at the OPAS Workshop in November, and travels around the state often.
Jo Oshiro	OPAS Staff Support	Jo came to OPAS after 10 years "at home" as personal assistant to a kid who's done soccer, Girl Scouts, LEGO Robotics, marching band. She thinks that STEM education is more closely allied to arts education than most people are willing to admit, and believes passionately in active learning and immersion. In a previous life, Jo did a variety of computer programming and support.
John Ossowski	Program and Advancement Manager for the Techstart Education Foundation	As one of the foundation’s projects, John works with enthusiastic educators to produce SuperQuest – a unique professional development series designed to support the work of technology educators across the region. The Techstart Education Foundation was formerly known as the Software Association of Oregon Foundation.
Roger Rennekamp	State 4H Program Leader	The 4H program benefits from funding by ETIC Pre-College Collaborative; they have an array of STEM enrichment activities and programs. Roger recently attended the NOISE conference.
Ray Vandiver	VP of Exhibits, OMSI	Ray has been an enthusiastic and proactive supporter of OPAS and has made OMSI a generous donor to OPAS workshops and outreach efforts.

Advisors and Interested Observers - on the listserv to stay informed, not attending meetings regularly

Eda Davis-Butts	Director of SMILE (Science and Math Investigate Learning Experiences) OSU	Eda chairs the OPAS Initiative Succeed Strategy Workgroup and is an articulate and well-traveled champion for diversity and creating a college-going culture. She likes the symphony.
Wendy Hawkins	Executive Director, Intel Foundation and Manager of Strategic Initatives, Intel Education, Intel Corporation	Wendy interested in the work of the OPAS Initiative, and has been instrumental in setting up the TV show "Design Squad"..
Di Saunders	Director, Communications Department, OUS Office of the Chancellor	Di has been a key part of the OPAS effort from the beginning. She's a NW native who has spent time with the Peace Corps, in Africa, and in the foundation sector in the Northeast.

For questions or information regarding OPAS and its workgroups, please email Jo Oshiro or call (503) 725.2910.

last update to this page October 5, 2007 jco

Latest Status Summary	Archive of Previous Agendas
Workshop 2006 Final Report	Meeting Notes - #1 March 1, 2007
Motivate Focal Strategy	Volunteers Teleconference March 21, 2007
Invitation to Join the Motivate Workgroup	Manny - Anderson Phone March 22, 2007
Workgroup Roster	Meeting Notes - #2 April 11, 2007
Notes - January 2007 Planning Meetings	Meeting Notes - #3 May 9, 2007
Notes - February 2007 Planning Meetings	Meeting Notes - #4 June 7, 2007
Kickoff Meeting Announcement	Meeting Notes - #5 July 11, 2007
	Meeting Notes - #6 August 8, 2007 - in process
Methods from Workshop 2006	Meeting Notes - #7 September 12, 2007
Working Documents	Meeting Notes - #8 October 10, 2007
Action Items	Meeting Notes - #9 November 14, 2007 - in process