This year’s Posters at the Capitol event featured seven of our amazing students: Izzy Jacober, Edwin Walck, Rashieq Cockerham, Isaac Puckett, Ananya Arcot, Shelby Mayhut, and Esme Keszler. Before heading to the event, we asked them to share a bit about their research journeys. Their responses were inspiring—they described the experience as a chance to practice science communication, connect with lawmakers, and represent a piece of Tennessee’s history through their work. Students also expressed huge appreciation for their research mentors, including our very own TSEC partner, Dr. Tiffany Rogers. We’re incredibly proud of this group for their hard work and dedication. Way to go, Raiders! 

Dr. Grant Gardner (Associate Director TSEC, Associate Professor of Biology) was recently selected for the 2022-2023 cohort of the MTSU Leadership on Deck Institute. This is a year-long administrative leadership training program to assist a select cohort of 10 faculty in reflecting and cultivating leadership skills with the goal of being prepared to accept leadership positions at MTSU. The group meets once per month over the course of a year and engages in focused topical discussions, guest lectures, and other learning opportunities. The program culminates in the development of a leadership statement and a self-led leadership project.  

TSIN and the Middle TN STEM Innovation Hub, hosted at TSEC, continued their long-standing collaboration to bring exciting professional development credit opportunities to educators all over the mid-state through the annual Innovative Educator Workshop series. The day-long workshops offer catered lunch, mileage reimbursement, and small stipends alongside the expert knowledge offered by local educators. These speakers, leaders in their fields, guide middle TN k-12 teachers through many different challenges they may face, from school STEM designations to implementing experiential learning.

TSIN and the Middle TN STEM Innovation Hub kicked off the workshop series this summer on June 14th by hosting the first of three Innovative Educator Workshops at MTSU’s Science Building. The workshop featured Dr. Amy Phelps, a professor of chemistry at MTSU, who discussed the structure and implementation of the student-centered learning method, POGIL. Dr. Phelps sees POGIL as a means to help teachers formalize their efforts to engage students more fully in the learning process. In her workshop, participants engaged in POGIL-based learning, explored how POGIL activities are structured, discussed group formation, and wrestled with challenges of implementation related to bringing POGIL to a classroom.

On June 16th, 2022, the workshop, Incorporating Biotechnology in the Classroom was facilitated at Oakland High School by Melissa Bunch. Melissa Bunch has been an educator for 26 years and currently teaches Biotechnology at Oakland High School in Murfreesboro, TN. Teachers traveled from all over the mid-state to hear Mrs. Bunch share her expertise and to discover ways to introduce their classrooms to exciting biotechnologies. They discussed the incorporation of biotechnology into curriculum as well as how to start a biotechnology program at their school.