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FREEDM logo FREEDM Systems Center

Education  ::  Pre-college Education Program

The FREEDM Systems Center has developed partnerships with 14 middle-and-high schools in three states to increase awareness of the importance of renewable energy systems and recruit future students. A feature of our Center is the theme "each one mentor one." A network of interconnections is being created between industry members, faculty, graduate students, undergraduate students, teachers, and high school students.

Goal: To develop and assess long-term partnerships with middle and high schools, teachers, and students to enhance teachers' engineering content knowledge and pedagogical methods, bring engineering concepts into the classroom, involve pre-college students in research, and increase the diversity and enrollment of domestic students in university degree programs.

Activities: ERC graduate student classroom visits, a Young Scholars program for high school students, a Research Experience for Teachers program (RET) which includes teacher curriculum development workshops and research experiences, and summer camps in renewable energy for girls and minorities.

The FREEDM partner schools are:

  • Eastern Alamance High School, Mebane, NC
  • Godby High School, Tallahassee, FL
  • Carl Hayden High School, Phoenix, AZ
  • Southern Alamance High School, Mebane, NC
  • Broadview Middle School, Burlington, NC
  • Fairview Middle School, Tallahassee, FL
  • Graham Middle School, Graham, NC
  • Hawfields Middle School, Elon College, NC
  • Turrentine Middle School, Burlington, NC
  • Western Middle School, Elon College, NC
  • Woodlawn Middle School, Mebane, NC
  • Leon High School, Tallahassee, FL

For Middle School Students: The Renewable Energy Summer Camp sponsored by NC State is available for students in partner middle schools. The weeklong camp inspires a diverse group of girls and boys to pursue careers in engineering, science, mathematics or technology. Beginning in summer 2010, a similar camp will also be held at Florida State University. Over 5 years, 144 campers will be recruited to participate.

For High School Students: The center's Young Scholars Program places high school students where the action is - in working engineering laboratories. During this paid summer experience, Young Scholars (with the help of graduate students, teachers, faculty, industry partners, and REUs) learn about the work in FREEDM research labs, participate in career and college exploration activities, and experience field trips and tours. Program participants also prepare a research project to submit to the International Science and Engineering Fair. The center also sponsors a renewable energy event at the North Carolina Science Olympiad. The winner is awarded a $1,000 scholarship to NC State. The center has committed to sponsor 100 Young Scholars over five years.

For Middle & High School Teachers: Teachers can build their engineering knowledge through the Research Experiences for Teachers in Engineering program (RET). This summer program brings teachers into center laboratories to participate in FREEDM-related lessons and field trips and helps them translate their experiences into classroom activities. The results will be classroom-tested and shared through the Internet. Stipends and CEU credits are available. Teaching materials are provided for each participant. The center has committed to sponsor 50 teachers over five years.

In addition, the FREEDM Systems Center is partnering with the NC State Kenan Fellows Program for Curriculum and Leadership Development. The 2009-2011 Kenan Fellow for FREEDM Systems Center is Nina Morley Daye of Orange High School in Orange County, NC. Her Kenan project is "Connecting to the Grid."

The FREEDM Systems Center's pre-college program is led by Dr. Sharon Schulze & Dr. Lisa Grable at NC State, Dr. Pat Dixon at FSU, and Dr. Keith Holbert at ASU. For more information on joining pre-college programs, please visit the Science House website.

Resources

Sponsored By

This project is an Engineering Research Center Grant funded by the National Science Foundation and industry partners (Award #0812121, Division of Engineering Education and Centers).

FREEDM Pre-college Project Partners: The Science House at NC State University, the Center for Integrating Research and Learning at Florida State University, and the Electrical Engineering Department at Arizona State University.

The 2010 FREEDM Annual Conference and NSF Site Visit will be held May 18-20 at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida!