Northwest Ohio Center of Excellence [NWO]
Vision, Goals, & Activities for 2009/2010

NWO Vision:

The Northwest Ohio Center of Excellence aims to advance science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education for people of all ages. Our purpose is to work with community partners to (a) generate new knowledge about the science of teaching and learning, (b) apply this knowledge by developing the expertise of K-12 educators and higher education faculty, (c) increase public support for, and understanding of, the STEM subject areas, and (d) to stimulate the interest of young people, especially those in underrepresented groups, in these rewarding fields of study and career opportunities. The following NWO goals guide this vision.

NWO Goals & Activities: NWO will attain the above goals through the following goal-aligned activities:

 

Goal 1: Develop the expertise of pre-service and in-service teachers and higher education faculty through research-based professional development framed by investigative science and mathematics teaching and learning.

Center Activities:

  • NWO Inquiry Series
  • NWO Symposium on Science, Mathematics, and Technology Teaching
  • Undergraduate professional organizations (BG/UT SECO and BGCTM)
  • Undergraduate and graduate teacher preparation courses or program modification

 

Goal 2: Recruit and retain students into STEM and STEM education disciplines.

Center Activities:

  • NWO Future Teacher Conference (part of the NWO Symposium)
  • Ohio Junior Science and the Humanities Symposium (OJSHS)

 

Goal 3: Conduct and communicate collaborative research on how people best teach and learn science and mathematics and/or on the barriers and enablers related to current reform efforts.

Center Activity:

  • COSMOS Research Learning Community
  • Faculty/Staff Research and COSMOS Team Participation

 

Goal 4: Develop and sustain a regional collaborative alliance including university, school, and community partners through a shared vision and collaborative spirit for tackling current STEM education issues.

Center Activities:

  • NWO Collaborative Council (NWOCC)
  • NWO Executive Board
  • NWO website
  • Business and community partnerships

 

Goal 5: Increase the leadership capacity for science and mathematics education in northwest Ohio.

Center Activities:

  • NWO Inquiry Series, Symposium, Summit, and FTC presentations (and others)
  • NWO Regional Partner Projects