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JUNE/JULY
2014
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Girls Engaged in Mathematics All-girl mathematics camp at La Joya ISD kicks off
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Spotlight: TGC intern shares experience giving back to the community
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Summer Residency 2014 TGC students spend thier summer at Harvard University
June - July 2014
Harvard University Extension School
The Texas Graduate Center has partnered with the Harvard University Extension School to implement the Math for Teaching Graduate Program. Harvard Extension School is one of the twelve degreegranting schools of Harvard University, offering professional certificates and liberal arts-based undergraduate and graduate degree programs aimed at nontraditional students, as well as openenrollment continuing
In this issue...
03 Summer Residency at Harvard University
“For many, summer is a time for road trips and family vacations, but for sixteen dedicated math teachers from the Rio Grande Valley, summer is a time of all-night study sessions and final exams at one of the most prestigious universities in the nation.”
10 My Time at the Texas Graduate Center
“What attracted me to this summer internship was that I wanted to be part of a movement or something that will positively impact the next generation.”
12 Young Girls Pursue Mathematics
“The notion that only boys can become scientists and engineers has persisted over time. Now, studies have shown that negative stereotypes about girls’ abilities in mathematics and science have impacted their performance in STEM.”
18 Inspiring Young Minds Page 2
Karen Lozano is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas – Pan American (UTPA). After earning her undergraduate degree from Universidad de Monterrey, Lozano moved to the United States to study at Rice University. She earned her doctorate in 1999.
What was originally known as Alumni Hall— nine thousand square feet shaped by massive wooden trusses, walnut paneling, and a blue, stenciled ceiling—was dedicated in 1874.
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Annenburg Hall, Harvard University
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President Dr. Roland Arriola Executive Director Dr. Mary Alice Reyes
About Us:
The Texas Graduate Center (TGC), a component of the Texas Valley Communities Foundation, has been established to support programs in higher education that will guide new and emerging leaders in education to implement transformational change that will impact schools and communities. TGC will offer distance learning graduate programs from outstanding universities in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The TGC will make available the latest telepresence technology and virtual classrooms with direct connection to world-class undergraduate and graduate programs from across the country. TGC will also serve as a college and career readiness facilitator offering assistance in selecting, preparing and enrolling in nationally recognized graduate programs.
Associate Director Adriana V. Lopez Designer & photographer David Alvarado Intern Danielle Garcia Academic Advisor Dr. Edwin LeMaster TGC OFFICES 1098 W. Expressway 83 Mercedes, Texas 78570
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TGC Harvard students study for their Graph Theory class at Harvard Yard, a grassy area of 22.4 acres enclosed by fences with twenty-seven gates. It is the oldest part of the Harvard University campus, its historic center, and its modern crossroads.
Summer Residency at Harvard University
F By: Adriana V. Lopez
or many, summer is a time for road trips and family vacations, but for sixteen dedicated math teachers from the Rio Grande Valley, summer is a time of all-night study sessions and final exams at one of the most prestigious universities in the nation. These sixteen teachers travel to Cambridge, MA each summer for three years to complete their summer residency requirement as part of the Texas Graduate Center’s (TGC) Harvard math graduate program. Currently, there are two cohorts participating in the Harvard math for teaching graduate program.
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TGC Students (left) attend Calculus 1, their first summer course taught by Otto K. Brestcher. This course covers differential and integral calculus in one variable, with applications. The topics covered overlap with the advanced placement calculus curriculum.
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Cohort I began their graduate program in 2013, Cohort II formed in the Spring of 2014. The summer residency provides both cohorts with a true Harvard experience. Along with taking two summer courses on campus, the students stayed in Adams House, one of Harvard’s most historical dormitories. Adams House is named after the historical Adams family, including John Adams, the second president of the United States. World War II President Franklin Delano Roosevelt also stayed at Adams house during his time as a Harvard undergrad. “The dorm is antique, a really nice place in that it has a lot of history, said Homer Colunga, a Weslaco ISD mathematics teacher, “It’s really exciting being able to explore Adams House because of its history.” Along with focusing on their academics, TGC scholars have opportunities to explore Cambridge’s historical attractions as well as meet Harvard faculty. Dr. Katherine Merseth, Faculty Director at the Harvard School of Education, hosted the TGC students at her summer home in Maine. This weekend getaway
served as a break from the rigorous instruction and studying in addition to getting to know one of Harvard’s most distinguished faculty members. Another advantage to being on campus is that the TGC scholars have an opportunity to meet other teachers in the program from around the world. “This year, I made sure I talked to other teachers that were not from Texas,” said Julio Tobias, an Edinburg CISD teacher and second-year Harvard grad student. Meeting teachers from around the world provides the TGC students with a different perspective, and allows them to bring back new ideas to their classroom, Tobias said. Upon their return, the TGC scholars will share their Harvard experience with their students, colleagues and community. “I think perhaps one of the best things is that it’s just a melting pot of cultures here,” said Colunga, “Just sitting in the cafeteria alone we’ve met people from all over the world and I think we’ll definitely have some stories to share with our students when we get back home.”
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Homer Colunga writes out a math problem in the Coolidge Room of Adams House, one of the twelve undergraduate houses at Harvard University.
TGC Students pose with a bronze sculpture of John Harvard (1607–1638), one of the founders of Harvard University. Many tourists believe that touching the statue’s foot will bring them good luck.
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These Harvard Graduate students are enrolled in the Math for Teaching graduate program offered by the Harvard Extension School. TGC Students Julio Tobias (center) and Jose Villagomez (right) during their Graph Theory class Rolando Balotro stands outside the “F” entryway into Adam’s House student dorm.
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My time at the Texas Graduate Center By: Danielle Garcia
I
am a senior at Saint Mary’s University in San Antonio, TX and I would not have chosen any other place to be. Yes, it was definitely hard adjusting to the big city life and actually getting around the ten highways they have there but I liked it. I’ve created long lasting friendships with many people at St. Mary’s University in the past two years.
What attracted me to this summer internship was that I wanted to be part of a movement or something that will positively impact the next generation. Living in Mercedes all my life has shown me that we, as a community, need to build our strength in education because education is what endures. I truly enjoy working here. I learn from everyone here, their ambitions and ideas on how they want to impact the community inspire me
and shows me the type of person I want to be in the future. Everyone in the foundation is humble, goaloriented and ambitious. If anything gets in their way, they try to find a different solution to accomplish the task. They inspire me everyday with something new and that’s what I like most about working here. I recently had a memorable experience here when I accompanied the TGC team to La Joya ISD to present the GEM (Girls Engaged in Mathematics) Camp to middle school girls. I had always worked in the office but that day I actually went out into the ‘field’ to help. I was pretty excited but nervous at the same time because I’m not the world’s greatest presenter and I would have been nervous if they wanted me to say a few words. But at the end of the day, it was a great experience to see how the team goes out and presents our foundation and programs to people.
“We, as a community, need to build our strength in education because education is what endures.” Page 10
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MASTERS IN PETROLEUM ENGINEERING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY CONTACT: ALOPEZ@TVCOF.ORG
956.903.4231 WWW.TXGRADCENTER.ORG
Cohort III is now Forming for January 2015
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La Joya ISD encourages young girls to pursue mathematics By: Adriana V. Lopez
The notion that only boys can become scientists and engineers has persisted over time. Now, studies have shown that negative stereotypes about girls’ abilities in mathematics and science have impacted their performance in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and math) areas.
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To build confidence and reduce math anxiety, the program incorporated Student Attributes for Math Success (SAMS), a curriculum that teaches goal setting, taking responsibility for learning, persevering through complex tasks and attention to detail.
According to the American Association of University Women, learning environment, instructional experiences and positive support for girls in STEM areas can significantly increase their ability, skills and aspirations towards careers in math and science. With this in mind, The Texas Graduate Center (TGC), in partnership with Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF) and La Joya ISD, launched GEM (Girls Engaged in Mathematics) Camp. The focus of the GEM camp is to improve math skills in middle school girls as well as build their overall confidence in mathematics. Dr. Alda Benavides, La Joya ISD Superintendent, initiated the creation of the GEM CAMP when she expressed an interest in preparing
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the district’s rising 6th grade girls to have greater confidence and skill in mathematics as they enter middle school. With support from the Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF), a non-profit organization with a mission to further education in South Texas, her vision was realized. The week-long camp focused on math content such as Number, Operation and Quantitative Reasoning, Patterns, Relationships and Algebraic Thinking, Geometry, and Probability and Statistics. To build confidence and reduce math anxiety, the program incorporated Student Attributes for Math Success (SAMS), a curriculum that teaches goal setting, taking responsibility for learning, persevering through complex tasks and attention to detail.
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“Some girls tend to be more timid when it comes to [math] class participation,” said Crystal Chagoya, a Texas Graduate Center student and mathematics teacher at La Joya ISD. “I think we need to focus on our future generation of girls because we need to empower them to dominate more in critical areas such as math and engineering,” Chagoya said. Chagoya, along with La Joya ISD teacher Queen Martin and South Texas ISD teacher Diana Garcia helped create the GEM curriculum. All three women are TGC students currently pursuing their masters degree in Mathematics for Teaching from Harvard University. TGC recruited three math teachers and four University of Texas-Pan American college mentors to lead
South Texas ISD teacher Maribel Berrones (center) instructs the GEM Camp students on writing mathematical expressions.
GEM Camp participants built a mouse-trap race car as part of the Engineering C are e r C onn e c ti on L ab.
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instruction. Jocelyn Olmedo, a third-year Electrical Engineering student at UTPA knows first-hand about the importance of camps like GEM. “I’d say I’m a product of camps and events like this myself, otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten so interested in being in the STEM field,” said Olmedo. “I’m really passionate about getting people from the Valley in STEM.” It’s common to find one or two girls in a STEM-related class every semester at the University, Olmedo added. GEM CAMP also included a Career Connection session to address the underrepresentation of girls in STEM career fields as well as expose the girls to how mathematics applies in different careers in STEM. These hands-on sessions cover topics such as Medicine, Robotics, Engineering, Crime Scene Investigation, App Development and Architecture. Heriberto Reynoso, a former NASA engineer and roboticist, encouraged the girls to explore the wonders of robotics and science. “I love empowering females to pursue robotics because the field needs diversity,” said Reynoso. During his career connection, girls worked in groups to construct a hexapod, a six-legged robot, with automated parts. The 5-day camp culminated with a “Pi Party” to celebrate the girls’ progress and accomplishments. The “Pi Party”, a reference to the mathematical term “pi”, included refreshments along with colorful
GEM Camp participants built a fully mechanical, insect-like robot using standard tools.
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boas for each guest. Accomplished female guest speakers were invited to address the audience and encourage the girls to work hard and pursue careers in the area of STEM. The list of speakers included Dr. Anissa Trevino, Executive Director for Secondary Education at La Joya ISD, Michelle Castillo, Harvard University graduate and Regional Political Director for Wendy Davis, Sarah Sagredo-Hammond, President of Atlas Electric and Air Conditioning, and Dr. Karen Lozano, Professor and Director of Nanotechnology Center at the Mechanical Engineering Department at UTPA. “The GEM camp was a wonderful program and I’m glad I had an opportunity to be a part of it,” said Denise Rivas, a teacher at Mercedes ISD who led the SAMS class. “Every week we saw quiet, shy girls who clearly lacked some confidence in themselves and by the end of the week, those same girls appeared more outgoing and confident. Each girl left with a positive outlook and increased knowledge of not only math skills but life skills that hopefully will lead them to success, Rivas added.
GEM Camp girls stand alonside representatives from the Organization of Women Executives during the Pi Party.
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Inspiring Young Minds
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Dr.
Karen Lozano, an Endowed Professor at UTPA, was a guest speaker at one of the GEM Camp’s Pi Parties. In her speech, Dr. Lozano stressed the importance of hard work and determination as key factors of her success as a Latina female engineer. Dr. Lozano holds a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Business from Universidad de Monterrey, and a Masters and PhD degree from the Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Department at Rice University. In 2000 she received one of the most prestigious awards for young scientists, the CAREER award granted by National Science Foundation to less than 10% of scientists. In 2006 she started working on the development of methods to deliver higher yields of nanofibers and these efforts resulted in the foundation of Fiberio Technology Corporation, a company established to sell machines that can mass produce nanofibers through the Forcespinning® system.
Karen Lozano is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas – Pan American (UTPA). After earning her undergraduate degree from Universidad de Monterrey, Lozano moved to the United States to study at Rice University. She earned her doctorate in 1999.
She has authored over 85 referee reviewed scientific publications, over 125 technical presentations, and 23 patent/patent applications. Among many other honors she has been invited to a Roundtable discussion with President Obama (White House 2013); received the Regent’s Outstanding Teaching Award 2013; was featured in the national report released by the Partnership for a New American Economy, “Patent Pending: How Immigrants Are Reinventing The American Economy” (2012); obtained the R&D award 2011; was a congressional Witness at a STEM Committee Hearing, June 2011; received the UTPA Distinguished Faculty granted by UTPA Alumni, 2011; was part of the Committee of Visitors (NSF) 2011; was granted the Innovations That Could Change the Way You Manufacture granted by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, 2010; among several others. She enjoys working with young students and through her Magic and Science Show she wishes to inspire many students to pursue STEM careers.
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The Texas Graduate Center is a public-private initiative of the Texas Valley Communities Foundation.