24 THE WESTERN SCHOLAR

Centeringon Science

FROM THE AIR WE BREATHE AND WATER WE

DRINK TO THE CARS WE DRIVE AND HIGH-TECH

GADGETS WE USE, SCIENCE IS A PART OF OUR

EVERYDAY LIFE.

In the classroom, science is a part of the everyday cur-riculum from kindergarten through high school. Trying toget students or parents interested in science, however, isanother story.

That’s where Karen Powell, the Bowling Green Com-munity College, and the Community College Regional Sci-ence Resource Center come in.

The community college at Western Kentucky Univer-sity has received a $295,410 Fund for the Improvement ofPostsecondary Education (FIPSE) grant from the U.S. De-partment of Education. FIPSE is funding 75.7 percent ofthe three-year project. Western will contribute $94,949 or24.3 percent.

Dr. Powell is director of the project that aims to in-crease student interest in science, impact the science cur-riculum, boost science scores on standardized tests, im-

T O M M Y N E W T O N

prove teacher education programs in science, reducedropout rates, and increase access to postsecondary edu-cation.

The Community College Regional Science ResourceCenter could have an impact on the local, state and na-tional levels. Locally, the center should increase studentinterest with hands-on learning. Statewide, the centershould boost the number of people seeking postsecondarytraining. Nationally, the center should serve as a model forthe concept of meeting the community of needs for sci-ence education.

“I came up with the idea,” Dr. Powell said, “whileworking with local students on science fair projects and Irealized what limited equipment they have. I thought itwould be nice to have a facility for our community collegestudents, middle school students and teachers.”

The Community College Regional Science ResourceCenter “will give middle school teachers and students awell-equipped laboratory to visit for extensive experi-ments,” she said.

SPRING 2001 25

Dr. Powell hopes the center’s work with students andteachers will lead to improved scores on the Common-wealth Accountability Testing System exams. In Kentucky,fewer than 2 percent of middle school students score “pro-ficient” on the standardized tests of science knowledge.

“We’re having a problem getting students motivatedand interested in science. If students aren’t interested inscience in middle school, they’re less likely to be inter-ested in science in high school or postsecondary schools,”she said.

“Today you’ve got to have basic science knowledge,”Dr. Powell said.

Waiting until students reach high school to implementinnovative educational programs is often too late to im-pact academic success or failure, according to Dr. Powell’sFIPSE grant application. Targeting middle school students,their parents and their teachers may be the key to improv-ing Kentucky high school graduation rates and increasinglevels of participation in postsecondary education pro-grams.

Western has even committed to award scholarships of$100 and $250 to students who improve their sciencescores on the CATS tests. “We believe we must get the at-

said. “She was the catalyst,” Dr. Powell said. “She was thebridge between Sponsored Programs and us.”

Dr. Frank Conley, Dean of the Community College, saidhe was pleased that Dr. Powell and Ms. Johnston weresuccessful in their application for the FIPSE grant.

“Grant supported activities will help the CommunityCollege achieve its strategic plan goals and the Council onPostsecondary Education Action Agenda items of improv-ing students’ readiness for college, increasing college en-rollments and graduation rates, preparing graduates forlife and work, and contributing to the economic develop-ment of the state,” Dr. Conley said. “This project shouldhelp more students in our service area decide to pursuepost-secondary educational opportunities and get themexcited about pursuing science as a career.”

The Bowling Green Community College is uniquely po-sitioned to offer the services, Dr. Powell said. “We just feellike we have a lot to offer, having a Community Collegephilosophy and being an integral part of Western and itstradition.”

The Community College has a fully equipped sciencelaboratory that is used for chemistry and biology courses,but faculty members determined that a significant amount

Today every job requires science knowledge and skills.Parents and children must recognize education is anecessity for economic growth and survival.

tention of middle school students about the importance ofgood performance in school and getting them to at leastfocus on the possibilities of going to college before highschool,” said Dr. Luther Hughes, Associate Vice Presidentfor Enrollment Management.

Kentucky ranks 46th in the percentage of the adultpopulation graduating from high school and has fewerthan 53 percent of those with a high school diploma seek-ing any kind of post-secondary education. In the six-county region surrounding the Community College Re-gional Science Resource Center, less than 4 percent of theadult population has any education beyond the highschool level.

Today every job requires science knowledge and skills.Parents and children must recognize education is a neces-sity for economic growth and survival, she said.

Barbara Johnston, Coordinator of Enrollment Servicesat the Community College, was instrumental in developingthe grant proposal and obtaining the funding, Dr. Powell

PHOT

O BY

SHE

RYL

HAGA

N-BO

OTH

26 THE WESTERN SCHOLAR

of laboratory time could be made available for middleschool students, teachers and parents in the evenings,Saturdays and during school breaks.

The hands-on, innovative approach should get middleschool students and their parents excited about science,Dr. Powell said.

The project, however, goes beyond the middle schoollevel. The center will be used by science education majorsand their professors from Western, by kindergartenthrough high school teachers for in-service science educa-tion, by parents of middle school students during field tripsand by students working on science fair projects.

“The center is pulling together a lot of resources andgives us all a good place to do science instruction,” Dr.Powell said.

The partners in the Community College Regional Sci-ence Resource Center make this effort truly collaborativein nature. State and local administrative, academic andsupport units will benefit.

offered by the CSMEE can use the center to enhance theircontent knowledge, teaching skills and general sciencelearning with real experiments.

For Ogden College of Science, Technology and Health,the center will provide middle school and high school stu-dents with access to research facilities, professors, andUniversity students working on science projects.

Campus-wide support units will also benefit from thiscenter. The Office of Minority Student Support Serviceswill expand the “Youth University” program to include thecenter’s programs.

With all these partners to help and serve, work is al-ready under way at the Community College Regional Sci-ence Resource Center. Programs will begin in the springand summer of 2001 with services expanding over thethree-year grant period.

“This lab is going to be busy all summer with studentsdoing science projects in a science lab,” Dr. Powell said.

The center will be used by science education majors andtheir professors from Western, by kindergarten throughhigh school teachers for in-service science education, byparents of middle school students during field trips andby students working on science fair projects.

Several Western academic colleges, centers and pro-grams within the colleges will assist with the grant.Western’s College of Education and Behavioral Scienceswill incorporate the center’s program into the curriculumfor middle school science education. Its Center for GiftedStudies will integrate the center into its summer educa-tional programs and its winter Super Saturday program.A support unit in the college, the grant-funded EducationTalent Search program to better prepare students for col-lege, will use the center for field trips, after-school pro-grams, and a two-week summer camp.

The Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmen-tal Education (CSMEE) will benefit because its Eisenhowergrant is science-based, and it works with public schoolteachers at the elementary and middle school levels to en-hance their content knowledge, which is sorely needed inthe state. The CSMEE serves both the education andscience colleges. Therefore, teachers of science and in-service educators, and students enrolled in workshops

PHOT

O BY

SHE

RYL

HAGA

N-BO

OTH