COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State University is taking part in a multi-state project offering teachers training and toolkits to prepare students for careers in bioenergy and bioproducts.
The five-year project is based at Cornell University and is funded by a $5 million grant from the Agriculture and Food Initiative of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The deadline to apply for the program is March 31.
Additional information on the program and eligibility is available at www.regonline.com/BioenergyTeachers2011. There is a $10 application fee.
Options
Three opportunities are available:
A 12-week internship this summer with OBIC, based on Ohio State’s Columbus campus. The intern will receive a $6,000 stipend and will work with experts in food processing, agricultural engineering, economics and related areas and help develop lesson plans relating to bioenergy and bioproducts, as well as professional development programs for teachers.
A six-week Train-the-Trainer program in which two applicants will be selected to attend a workshop at Cornell to be trained on a suite of laboratory kits and workbooks and certification in Smart Board technology. These participants will then work with OBIC for an additional three weeks.
The project will pay for the costs of attending the Cornell program, as well as offer a $3,000 stipend. These participants will become Master Teacher Trainers and will offer training to other teachers during a one-week workshop in August.
A one-week Master Teacher workshop for 10 participants at the Ohio State Fair Aug. 1-5. These teachers will learn how to teach basic bioenergy and bioproducts concepts to other teachers using prepared lab kits and interactive whiteboard activities, which will be provided by the project.
The teachers will receive full scholarships for the program, as well as a $500 stipend after the workshop’s completion to help defray costs of participating.
Participation
Other states participating in the project are New York, Maryland and Delaware.
Any educator may apply to be a part of the program at any site. Applicants who are not selected for participation in 2011 are eligible to be put on a waiting list for future years.
For more information about the program, see the website at www.regonline.com/BioenergyTeachers2011 or contact Hall at 614-292-4188 or hall.16@osu.edu.
