NAGT News - Vol 23 - No 8

Initial Publication Date: August 10, 2023

NAGT Election Results

NAGT will welcome its newest elected officers at the 2023 GSA Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, from October 15-18, 2023. Congratulations to all the newly elected officers and thank you for your time and commitment to NAGT!

National Officers: Second Vice President: Katherine Ryker | Councilors-at-Large: Nancy Chen and Cody Kirkpatrick

TED Officers: President: Bridget Mulvey | Vice President: Daniel Capps | Past President: Christopher Roemmele

GER Officers: Past President: Emily Scribner | President: Chris Mead | Vice President: Caitlin Callahan | Secretary: Kathryn (Katie) Boyd | Graduate Student Liaison: Kristen Foley

Geo2YC Officers: Vice President: Sean Tvelia | Webmaster: Karen Layou | Archivist: Pete Berquist

Renew Today for the Lowest Rate

As noted last month, starting in 2024, dues for regular members will increase by $10 to $85 per year. Dues for K-12 educators, adjunct faculty, retired members, and students will not change. You can lock in the current rate by renewing before September 1. Renew and encourage others to join today!

Nominate Yourself or Others for an NAGT Committee

Help to guide the work of the organization: NAGT committees are seeking new members. For more information about each committee and to nominate yourself or a colleague, please visit NAGT's Get Involved in NAGT Leadership web page. The following committees are seeking new members:

Stimulation of Interest in the Earth Sciences: Neil Miner Award Committee
Excellence in Earth Science Writing and Editing: James H. Shea Award Committee
Scholarships for Field Study Committee
Advocacy Committee
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Webinar Planning Committee
Development Committee
Gary Fuis and Stacey Andrews Scholarship Committee, supporting participation in the NAGT/USGS Cooperative Summer Fellowship Program

Nominate yourself or a colleague by September 6

Apply to be NAGT's Social Media Editor

Do you enjoy making connections across the geoscience education community? Are you interested in learning about and sharing timely information and resources with the NAGT community and beyond? Do you make a point of staying connected to geoscience education through social media? If you answered yes to these questions, then you might be a good fit for the NAGT Media Editor.

The Social Media Editor would be involved with creating this NAGT monthly newsletter, which serves as a means to inform our members about relevant events and activities within and beyond the organization. In addition, the Editor would have the opportunity to expand our impact and reach in social media through NAGT's Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter/X accounts.

Learn more about the position and, if it sounds like a good fit, apply by August 30.

Rendezvous 2023 Recap

Thank you to everyone who attended the 9th annual Earth Educators' Rendezvous! We hope the event provided you with inspirational teaching ideas and creative ways to continue to build our community.

Submit Article Suggestions to In the Trenches

Are you doing something creative, innovative, or inspiring in your geoscience teaching? In the Trenches (ITT) would like to spread the word! ITT articles are short (2500 words or so) pieces that describe what you're doing and how others can try your techniques. Submit ITT article suggestions here.

Check out the July issue!

NAGT at GSA 2023

NAGT is sponsoring a variety of symposia and sessions at the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Geological Society of America held in Pittsburgh, PA, from October 15-18, 2023.

View NAGT-sponsored sessions
Register for GSA's Annual Meeting
- Not a GSA member, but interested in attending the Annual Meeting? NAGT members receive a discount! (Note, GSA members receive the best rate, so if you are a GSA member, please register as such.) To take advantage of this discount for non-GSA members, register for the meeting, and log into your NAGT account when completing the Non-member Questionnaire. In the My Affiliations Screen (a few screens into the questionnaire), select NAGT as the GSA-Associated Society to receive your registration discount.

NAGT at the AGU Fall Meeting 2023

NAGT is sponsoring a variety of geoscience education sessions and activities planned for the Fall 2023 AGU meeting, held in San Francisco, CA, and online from December 11-15, 2023. The meeting theme this year is Wide.Open.Science.

Learn more on the AGU Fall Meeting web page.

Check Out the Journal of Geoscience Education Special Issue

The Journal of Geoscience Education has published a special issue. In our VOICES, is available now on the Taylor and Francis website.

The Journal of Geoscience Education is always looking for submissions related to learning and teaching in geoscience and related domains.

Submit a paper

Participate in the Geoscience Education & Mentorship Support (GEMS) Program

Geoscience Education & Mentorship Support (GEMS) program is recruiting mentors and mentees for the 2023-2024 year. Our goal is to match students interested in applying to graduate school with mentors based on needs, backgrounds, and interests. Mentees can request mentorship along two tracks: the Ruby Track is for individuals interested in going to graduate school in the future and the Sapphire Track is for individuals who are applying to graduate programs during the current application cycle. Mentors can choose to provide support in either track.

Round 1 applications are due August 18th. This round is especially advantageous for mentees preparing for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowships Program (GRFP) due in October, but is open to all applicants. You will be notified of your match by September 1, 2023.
Round 2 applications are due October 1st: You will be notified of your match by October 10, 2023.

Details of the program can be found in the informational flyer. (Acrobat (PDF) 3.4MB Aug2 23) Please note that we are not accepting applications from international students who have never been enrolled in a US degree-granting program.

Apply at: https://gems-program.org/matching

Apply for the AGU Bridge Program as a Partner Institution by 1 October

Applications are now open to partner with the AGU Bridge Program, which works with graduate geoscience departments across the U.S. to promote equitable practices in graduate education and to recruit and retain students from historically marginalized groups.
As a Partner department in the AGU Bridge Program, you will have:

Access to resources for improving your department's equity practices and a connection to a community of peer departments.
Access to the AGU Bridge Program student applicant database.
Recognition by AGU of your department's commitment to diversity and inclusion in the Earth and space sciences.
Recommendation of your department's educational environment to prospective AGU Bridge Program students.

You are invited to apply on behalf of your graduate department on the AGU Bridge Program website. Click on the "Partner Benefits & Applications" tab to get started. The deadline for partner applications is 11:59 p.m. ET on 20 September 2023.

Apply

Apply for a Traveling Workshop: Bring our experienced leaders to you

The NAGT Traveling Workshops Program (TWP) connects you with experienced facilitators to design a two-day workshop that meets the needs of your department, program, or group. The TWP has well-tested workshop sessions on adapting to change, (re)designing your courses and curriculum, inclusive mentoring, supporting all students, and more. Are you preparing for a program review or responding to the feedback from one? Have you seen changes in the faculty in your department through new hires or retirements? Do you feel you could do a better job serving your students? We can help you. Apply to bring facilitators to you for a Spring/Summer 2024 workshop by October 15, 2023.

Apply for a Traveling Workshop

Former NAGT President Featured in the News

Former NAGT President Don Haas' work was highlighted in an article published recently in "Buffalo Tales," an on-line publication that highlights people and events in western New York state. Haas' work related to climate and sustainability advocacy has earned him the publication's accolades as a highly influential Buffalonian (NY). Read the article here.

Do you have good news related to your geoscience education work that you would like to share with the NAGT community? Submit it to NAGT's Community Kudos!

2024 Earth Educators' Rendezvous

Mark your calendar and save the date for the tenth annual Earth Educators' Rendezvous, taking place July 15-19, 2024, in Philadelphia, PA! The Rendezvous brings together researchers and practitioners working in all aspects of undergraduate Earth education, including a mix of college faculty, graduate students, and K-12 teachers from all disciplines who are interested in improving their teaching about Earth.

GEO2YC Division

Apply For a Geo2YC Faculty Development Grant! Deadline September 15

The Geo2YC Division would like to support your efforts to promote geoscience education in two-year colleges. To this end, we will award mini-grants up to $500 to support an activity (workshop, field trip, etc.) that benefits faculty from multiple institutions and travel grants of $100 to help an individual attend a professional development activity.

You must be a member of the Geo2YC Division of NAGT to apply. The proposed activity must align with the goals of the Geo2YC Division. If you are awarded a mini-grant, you must submit an article sharing your event to the Geo2YC "Foundations" newsletter. Preference will be given to members who have not previously received a Geo2YC grant.

Apply by Sept 15. We look forward to your application!

Nominate an Outstanding Adjunct 2YC Faculty today!

The Outstanding Adjunct Faculty Award (OAFA) is an opportunity to showcase the efforts of you or one of your adjunct colleagues who is doing great work in geoscience education. Nominations are accepted on a rolling basis. See the information page for more details about the award.

Nominate an Outstanding Adjunct Faculty Member

Geoscience Education Research (GER) Division

Division Seeks New Media Director

The NAGT-GER Division is seeking a member to fill the role of Media Director on the Division leadership team. This is a 1-year appointment beginning in October 2023.There is the possibility of extension for a 3-year term when Division elections are next held, in June 2024. If you are interested in this position or would like more information, please email NAGT-GER Division President Emily Scribner (escribn@clemson.edu).

Teacher Education (TED) Division

Post to the TED Division Facebook Page

Members are invited to post time-critical information on the TED Division Facebook page.

Help Testing the Validity of a Survey Instrument - IRB Approved

Hello instructors and program directors!

I (Alyssa Abbey) am working on a project that focuses on adding new components to field courses and assessing the efficacy of those additions. My team and I are currently collecting data to use in establishing the internal reliability and construct validity of a survey instrument. We are interested in students' self-perception of skills they develop during their undergrad experiences. Can you please send this survey to the students you work with in your classes? Also, please share with any other instructors and institutions who you know would be willing to help us with survey distribution for our test. Students surveyed do not have to have taken any specific geo/Earth science classes, and can be at any level/experience in their education.

Again, thank you for your help with distributing this survey.

Alyssa Abbey, California State University Long Beach

Here is a blurb you can use to introduce the survey to the students:

Dear Students,

Some colleagues of mine are conducting a science education project to assess skill development during classes with field trips. You do not have to have had a class with field trips to participate. The following survey will help them gather useful data for the project and will take you only 10 minutes to complete. Your participation is greatly appreciated. https://csulb.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9TgjE6bgC672SSq