Dear Colleagues, The National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) and the UTeach Institute at the University of Texas at Austin are soliciting proposals from qualified universities throughout the United States to participate in a dramatic initiative to increase the quality and quantity of K-12 mathematics, science, and computer science teachers. NMSI, in conjunction with the UTeach Institute, seeks proposals through a competitive Request for Proposal process from non-profit institutions of higher education located throughout the country to implement teacher preparation programs based on the very successful UTeach program. In its ten years, UTeach has graduated more than 1000 undergraduates with a B.A. degree in a natural science and teaching credentials, 86% of whom have gone on to teach K-12 science. NMSI and the UTeach Institute encourage institutions of higher education interested in participating in this initiative to submit a preliminary proposal describing the setting at the institution of higher education and the environment in which the UTeach program will be implemented. NMSI and the UTeach Institute will identify candidates who have the necessary resources to successfully implement the program and invite them to both attend a proposal preparation conference and to submit a full proposal. Full proposals will be submitted through and endorsed by the Governors office of the institutions home state. Finalists will be interviewed before grant awards are made. Each stage of this process is described in detail in the Request for Proposal found at http://www.uteach- institute.org/go/institute/publications/request-for-proposal, including information theUTeach program.
While proposals must ultimately be submitted by a University president (with approval of the home state governor), we strongly encourage science faculty to take the lead in organizing these proposals. This is a particularly exciting opportunity to contribute to the training of environmentally literate teachers, and to bolster the quality of evolution education in this country. It would therefore be particularly valuable to have proposals involving ecology and/or evolution faculty. Programs such as UTeach are a substantial undertaking, but are also vital to improving early science and math education nationwide. I strongly encourage you to look at the Request for Proposals URL listed above and consider taking this opportunity to contribute to science teacher training. Information on how to submit a proposal is available at http://www.uteach-institute.org/go/institute/publications/request-for- proposal Sincerely, Dan Bolnick Dr. Daniel Bolnick Assistant Professor Section of Integrative Biology/UTeach Program University of Texas at Austin Austin TX 78712 office: (512) 471-2824 lab: (512) 471-1964 fax: (512) 471-3878
