Our TxGCP eNewsletter arrives monthly in your inbox to learn about science, technology, engineering and math resources, educational opportunities and more around Texas and beyond!
September 2017
Request STEM Professionals for Classrooms/Programs!
We’re pushing STEM volunteer and mentor needs out to a wide network of STEM professionals on September 6th. If your classroom or organization has a need for a STEM volunteer or mentor (or a team of them!), enter your request into Texas STEM Connections by the morning of September 5th to be included. Find instructions for how to enter a request for a volunteer here.

Texas STEM Connections is a web-based tool that makes it easy for STEM professionals to connect with K-20 educators, classrooms, out of school time programs, and other volunteer opportunities. Professionals can share their skills and expertise to bring real-world, authentic learning opportunities to all our students helping to create the next generation of innovators. Through in-person matches and virtual sessions, professionals can help educators and program providers connect their students to the world of STEM. Together we can make a difference.
All Educator Resources
September 12, 2017 from 5 - 8:30 p.m.
San Antonio, TX
Experience how flying accelerates learning with iFLY's STEM Education Program during our Open House Event! We will explore the STEM principles behind our wind tunnel technology through exciting lectures, test flights, and lab activities. Participants will also review important details on our TEKS aligned curriculum for grades K-12. Educators are eligible to fly FOR FREE and friends and family fly at discounted rates!

October 13, 2017
Houston Community College
Join us for a celebration of STEM Education Day. This year's theme is STEM Connected; linking education work and play every day! The day will include a keynote speaker, breakout sessions, a share-a-thon, and a resource fair. Don't miss out on lunch and refreshments along with awards, door prizes and more! Submit to present, grab a vendor booth, register to attend.

Waco, TX
Find a Way, Not an Excuse: Women in STEM presents the lives of 19 women and their contributions to the science, technology, engineering, and math fields. Over the past 150 years across the state, country, and world, including five from Baylor University. From the clothes we wear to the phones we use, and from the food we eat to the health of our bodies, our quality of life has been improved by female pioneers in STEM. Women have contributed in STEM fields for generations, often without credit. Created in part by Baylor University Museum Studies graduate students, the exhibit focuses on pioneering innovations in STEM with the hope of inspiring a fierce desire to learn continuously and encourage curiosity to lead to discovery.

November 9, 2018
Thompson Conference Center, Austin, TX
This event has been hosted at IBM corporate headquarters in New York for several years, but our IBM Fellow, Rhonda Childress, is bringing it to Austin for the first time, to reach a good local as well as global audience. In past years STEM sessions in New York, has had 10K participants attend through these venues – we plan to expand further this year. We’re planning on having around 500+ in person attendance. The day will consists of multiple TED-type talks, VIP speakers, University speakers and demos that showcase STEM related content and initiatives. We are looking for STEM related organizations to host a table top event that students can interact with and learn about STEM or activities in Austin.

The Hill Country Science Mill is a new, cutting-edge interactive science museum in Johnson City with exhibits designed to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders. The Science Mill developed new 30-75 minute, TEKS-aligned, hands-on STEM exploration Learning Lab experiences to complement their field trips. Learning Labs are divided and aligned by grade groups K-2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12. Each Learning Lab allows students of all ages to interact with Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math in an entirely new way. Limited space available for the 2016-2017 school year. Learn more. 

EcoRise offers a wide-range of curriculum and tools to help k-12 teachers create engaging, authentic learning experiences that foster student innovation and environmental literacy. Whether you're a 2nd grade teacher looking to implement a cross-curricular recycling campaign or an AP Environmental Science teacher seeking a more hands-on approach to sustainability, EcoRise resources can be customized to meet your unique academic needs. Ready to join the movement and ignite a new generation of green leaders? Get involved now!

"Hyperlinked" producer Brindak Blake told CNN "STEM should be an everyday thing for girls...We want to provide these kind of positive role models that are relatable to middle school and younger or older elementary school girls," she said. "We want to empower them." That means characters who like to code and develop apps as much as they like to talk about boys or hang out with their friends.

Educator Resources by Grade
Elementary Educators
Dumpster 101 is an innovative environmental science curriculum for 5th and 7th grades designed around lab and inquiry activities. Students apply scientific concepts and skills to key subject areas of food, water, air, energy, waste, and health as they explore the central project challenge – transforming a used trash dumpster into a sustainable home. Aligned to TEKS! 

Dallas grant applications due October 20th
Softchoice will award classroom technology grants of $10,000 each to 10 publicly-funded elementary or middle schools serving students from low-income communities in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Dallas, Los Angeles, Seattle, Toronto and Montreal (at least one grant will be awarded in each city).

Austin, TX
Come and explore Thinkery with your students this upcoming school year. We're now accepting requests for Guided Tours and Focused Field Trips for the 2017–2018 school year! 
• Guided Tours are available for Pre-K–5th grade, 120 students max.
• Focused Field Trips are available for 3rd–5th grade, 25 students max
Middle School Educators
September 16, 2017
Austin, TX
Calling all Educators! You are invited to participate in a Science Action Club Activity Leader workshop to bring citizen science to your middle-school youth! The California Academy of Sciences is pleased to announce the continued expansion of Science Action Club, a nationwide STEM program for middle school youth in out-of-school time. The Texas Girls Collaborative Project is excited to continue this project in Texas in collaboration with The University of Texas at Austin Environmental Science Institute and The University of Texas at Austin Women in Engineering Program! Registration fee: $75 for up to 3 individuals from your organization!

Dumpster 101 is an innovative environmental science curriculum for 5th and 7th grades designed around lab and inquiry activities. Students apply scientific concepts and skills to key subject areas of food, water, air, energy, waste, and health as they explore the central project challenge – transforming a used trash dumpster into a sustainable home. Aligned to TEKS! 

Dallas grant applications due October 20th
Softchoice will award classroom technology grants of $10,000 each to 10 publicly-funded elementary or middle schools serving students from low-income communities in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Dallas, Los Angeles, Seattle, Toronto and Montreal (at least one grant will be awarded in each city).

Middle school students learn that people like themselves can make meaningful contributions to science by reviewing examples of online citizen-science projects, then forming "engineering teams" to brainstorm ideas to benefit their community and design conceptual interactive websites that could organize and support the projects. 

Virtual
SciGirls has made a commitment to providing quality, gender-equitable, inquiry-based STEM activities that are fun for all! Check out the activities under the following topic areas:
  • Earth & Space
  • Engineering
  • Health
  • Life & Environmental
  • Physics & Chemistry
  • Technology
High School Educators
The Alamo AFCEA chapter offers a STEM Teaching Tools Grant intended to promote effective STEM teaching and to enhance the abilities of capable teachers in secondary schools in the San Antonio metropolitan area. The awards are to be used by the teacher to purchase consumable supplies for science experiments and activities in the classroom. Primary consideration is given to teachers working in schools, which are poorly supported, and/or with economically disadvantaged students. Awards are not limited to public schools.

Due September 6, 2017
Our High School Program kick-off event will host 100 high school girls from the Austin metro area in a completely free-to-participate event. This program includes food during events, transportation to and from events, and child care if needed. Each participate will attend one technology related workshop and leave with a take-home item from the workshop. Nominate a student today!

Engineer Your Life is a guide to engineering careers for high school girls! Imagine what life would be like without pollution controls to preserve the environment, life-saving medical equipment, or low-cost building materials for fighting global poverty. All this takes engineering. In very real and concrete ways, women who become engineers save lives, prevent disease, reduce poverty, and protect our planet. Dream Big. Love what you do. Become an engineer.

eGFI is for everyone! From the interactive website to the colorful and inspiring print and digital magazine, there is something for everyone--students, K-12 teachers and informal educators, parents and guardians, and anyone else with an interest in engineering. 

The University of Texas at Austin has funding to help you bring a  project-based engineering course to your Texas high school in 2017-2018. This course and comprehensive teacher support was developed by a team of UT faculty in collaboration with NASA engineers and secondary education specialists. Students complete a series of engaging and socially relevant design challenges to develop engineering design skills and habits of mind. Starting in 2016-2017, students also have the option to  dual-enroll at UT and earn three hours of freshman-level credit. This may be the last year we can offer up to $8000 in implementation support per campus, so now is the time to learn more!
Join our K-12 STEM Outreach Google Groups! These groups are all about sharing resources, information, events, volunteers, needs, and more with others reaching out to K-12 students aiming to excite them about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Central TX |  DFW |  East Texas |  El Paso |  Houston |  Laredo |  RGV |  San Antonio |  West TX

For those not in one of these areas who still want to receive information going out to all groups, join the  Texas K-12 STEM Outreach group. 
 
Contact  Tricia Berry for any specific regional requests or questions.
Let other know about the great programs you run! To find STEM programs across the country or to list your own, please visit    The Connectory
Find fabulous STEM role models in your area to show virtually or connect with in-person on the FabFems site!
About TxGCP & NGCP
The Texas Girls Collaborative Project (TxGCP) connects organizations and individuals across Texas committed to informing and motivating girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. The TxGCP is excited to provide opportunities across Texas for collaboration, networking, sharing of best practices, and leveraging of resources through in-person forums, listservs and mini-grants.   
Led by the Women in Engineering Program (WEP) at The University of Texas at Austin along with a Leadership Team and Champions Board, the TxGCP brings together advocates and leaders from non-profits, K-12 schools, higher education institutions, companies and organizations across Texas.
The vision of the National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP) is to bring together organizations throughout the US and Puerto Rico that are committed to informing and encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). 
The TxGCP eNewsletter is distributed approximately once a month. Visit the TxGCP web site for additional updates on upcoming events, resources and mini-grant information.