Welcome to Summer! We look toward summer fun, STEM camps, workshops, museums, competitions, and professional development. And let’s not forget about STEM events around the state!

In this issue, we are excited to bring attention to the Delaware State Fair and our DFSME contest, “STEM Is Everywhere at the State Fair!” We encourage teachers to motivate your students in discovering where Science, Technology, Engineering and Math are incorporated into things going on at the Fair. As we know, STEM is in our everyday lives, all around us. The contest invitation is to write a short essay, or take a picture, or create an illustration, poster or artwork with a description of how it relates to STEM. There are cash prizes and the chance to be published in next month’s issue of DFSME News!

As we dip into summer, remember STEM doesn’t take a vacation. We hope your next few months are filled with STEM enrichment, learning and fun!

— Randy Guschl, Executive Director

Delaware Foundation for Science and Mathematics Education (DFSME)

June 28 — Croda sponsored a crop care workshop at Christiana High School. Shown (L to R) are "Microemulsion Lab" participants Gillian Cannon, Kellie Michaud, Colin Scanlan, Kelly Oldis and Katherine Hawkins.

Agriscience Professional Workshop About Crop Care

About the FFA workshop, Angus said, “Together, we learned about the use of chemicals in agriscience and the different types of adjuvants which are used. We focused in on surfactants and microemulsion formulations. The teachers did a Microemulsion Lab to see whether different ratios of oil, water, and surfactant made microemulsions or not, and observed the different properties of the mixtures we tested, including a lamellar phase.”

Smart science to improve lives™

At Croda, ‘Smart science’ embodies using the knowledge, passion and entrepreneurial spirit of our people to create, make and sell specialty ingredients used by industries and consumers around the world. We are built on a foundation of turning renewable raw materials into innovative ingredients.



‘Improving lives’ is our ambition to become the most sustainable supplier of innovative ingredients.

Aligning our approach with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ensures we can help to tackle some of the biggest challenges the world faces today. From sustainable processes and innovative ingredients helping to protect skin, reduce carbon emissions and grow more food, to improving well-being and the efficacy of life-saving drugs, we are using our Smart science to improve lives™ every day.

To learn more about Croda Inc., click here.

“STEM Is Everywhere at the State Fair”

Take a Photograph  •  Write a Short Essay  •  Get Published!

STEM is everywhere in our daily lives! And you can find it everywhere at the DE State Fair too! DFSME invites students K-12 to explore this STEM activity during the State Fair in Harrington, DE from July 20-29. Even if you can't get there, you can still participate from home.

How Can I Participate?

Write a short essay, or take a photo, or submit a picture of your personal creation, an illustration, poster or creation describing your discovery and how it relates to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

It can include anything related to STEM, including agriculture, oceans, robotics, computers, electronics, and more. The sky is the limit!

Cash Prizes! Get Published!

$250 First Place / $100 Second Place / $50 Third Place

Winning submissions will be published in our August eNews issue!

Send your submission by Tuesday, August 1, 2023. to dkidd@dtcc.edu

using subject line “State Fair STEM”. One submission per person.

First State Students Earn Innovative Honors

at National STEM Conference

Students and advisors from Delaware joined more than 8,000 national members at the 45th Annual Technology Student Association (TSA) conference that was hosted in Louisville, KY in June. The First State delegation represented 130 of Delaware’s finest student leaders.

Students in Middle School and High School competed in individual and team events such as: Architecture; Podcasting; Biotechnology; Board Game Design; Career Prep; Coding; Cybersecurity; Data Science and Analytics; Video Production; Dragster Design; Extemporaneous Speech; Fashion Design and Technology; Flight Endurance; Foundations of Information Technology; Future Teacher; Manufacturing Prototype; Microcontroller Design; Photographic Technology; Solar Sprint; Software Development; STEM Animation; Structural Engineering; System Control Technology; Technology Problem Solving; VEX Robotics; Video Game Design; Virtual Reality Visualization (VR); and Website Design and more. 

Top 10 National Finalists from Delaware:

Desen Basara | 1st place in Essays on Technology | Caesar Rodney HS

Shiven Reddy & Youg Patel | 3rd place in Technology Problem Solving | Newark Charter HS

Nathan Hryniewicz | 5th place in CAD Engineering | Newark Charter HS

Arnav Angra | 7th place in Foundations of Information Technology | H.B. duPont MS

John Barnas, Zachary Barnas, & Mason Lenoir | 7th place in Video Game Design | Postlethwait MS

James Carroll & Audrey Houghton | 10th place in Forensic Science | Newark Charter HS

Ethan Ho, Chase Polk & Noah Veron | 10th place in System Control Technology | Newark Charter HS

For more info, go to www.detsa.org or email Mike Fitzgerald @ mike.fitzgerald@doe.k12.de.us.

To see the full list of national finalists, click here.

FREE PDF Download!

The Chips and Science Act: A STEMconnector Brief

STEMconnector aims to support sustainable and impactful engagement with its partners in order to develop a robust and inclusive STEM-ready workforce. 

The U.S. semiconductor industry is experiencing transformative shifts, yet faces hurdles primarily due to a workforce that is not adequately equipped to meet the requirements for chip design and production. This brief document provides STEM stakeholders across education, workforce development, and employment sectors with an understanding of the significant implications the CHIPS and Science Act carries.

We invite you to download our latest resource! Learn about key features of the CHIPS and Science Act, and its implications for STEM education and workforce development.

July’s 2023 Outstanding Delaware Women in STEM Honoree

Delaware’s (Un)Hidden Figures

At the Proclamation Signing on March 28, Million Women Mentors Delaware (MWM-DE) marked the occasion by announcing the 2023 Outstanding Delaware Women in STEM honorees. This annual recognition celebrates the groundbreaking achievements of these Delaware women in STEM, as well as illuminate the many STEM career paths for Delaware girls. Each month we highlight a 2023 Honoree.

Edimara Reis, Ph.D. is Director, Antibody Pharmacology within the Biotherapeutic Research team at Incyte. Her areas of expertise are immunology, oncology, and drug discovery, and she has established herself as one of the world’s thought leaders in the field of complement biology.

Million Women Mentors is the premier network dedicated to encouraging girls and women around the world to pursue, persist and succeed in STEM careers. The Delaware STEM Council and DFSME are partners in the event along with MWM-DE and the Office of the Governor, State of Delaware.

FREE! Online or In-Person

Smithsonian National Education Summit July 18-20

The 2023 Summit, Together We Thrive offers in-person and online skill-building workshops geared towards PreK-12 educators, librarians, media specialists, and policymakers nationwide. You're invited to participate in sessions exploring four distinct tracks, including:

           • Life on a Sustainable Planet

           • STEAM Education

           • Reckoning with Our Racial Past

           • An Integrated Arts Education

Each track features a series of free online webinars led by museum experts and teacher practitioners, as well as in-person skill-building workshops and deep-dive discussions at the Smithsonian. No matter which track you choose, or which format you participate in, you'll gain a wealth of amazing ideas.

Earn a Professional Development Certificate for your participation hours.

To register for this FREE summit, click here. For more information, click here. 

If you have any questions, please email SmithsonianEducation@si.edu.

Closeup of Birth of Sun-like Stars

NASA’s Webb Telescope Celebrates First Year of Science

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope continues to wow with an action-packed image belying a relatively quiet star-forming region.

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope caps a successful first year of science, and stunning imagery, with a detailed view of the closest star-forming region to Earth, the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, resulting in a dynamic image that belies the region’s relative quiet – and practically begs for explanation of what exactly we are looking at.

While dual jets have been seen blasting out of new stars before, the texture that Webb’s NIRCam instrument reveals in the multiple jets crisscrossing the image is unprecedented. In striking contrast, the yellower half of the image is dominated by a glowing cave of dust being lit up and eroded by the most massive star in the scene. Its stellar neighbors are the mass of our Sun or smaller, with some displaying the telltale shadows of protoplanetary disks. 

“We are looking at planetary systems potentially

 similar to our own in their earliest stages.”

From our cosmic backyard in the solar system to distant galaxies near the dawn of time, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has delivered on its promise of revealing the universe like never before in its first year of science operations…READ MORE

To view more images and download videos, click here.

Attend a Virtual Information Session - July 25

Explore Genome Science and CRISPR Technology

The Learning Lab is a unique opportunity for 11th and 12th grade students and their teachers to explore the novel and innovative world of genome science and CRISPR technology.

To learn more, attend our virtual information session

on July 25 at 10am. To R.S.V.P., email geneeditinginstitute@christianacare.org.

To schedule a Learning Lab for your classroom, send an email to Amanda Hewes at geneeditinginstitute@christianacare.org.

Application Deadline: September 30

Educators Can Earn Cash Prizes!

Delaware STEM Educator Awards recognize a teacher, or team of teachers at Elementary (K-5), Middle (6-8) and High School (9-12) levels that demonstrate STEM innovation and excellence through teaching, academic collaboration, and student engagement.

Cash Prizes up to $7,500 Awarded!

Winners at each level are eligible for a cash award up to $7,500 as a thank you for their commitment to STEM in Delaware and the success of our students. Winners will be honored November 9, 2023 at the 9th Annual Delaware STEM Educator Awards Event.

The Community Awards are open to organizations that coordinate and organize STEM activities for youth in grades pre-K through 12 that typically, but not exclusively, take place outside the school environment.

For more information and to download application and instructions:

For application inquiries or for an Awards coordinator, email DelawareSTEMawards@gmail.com.

Nominate a Shining Light Educator!

Anyone may nominate a STEM formal, informal or community Educator for the Shining Light Award. Honorees receive an award, a $100 gift card and a mini heavy-duty mag flashlight.

For "easy-to-nominate" details, visit us at dfsme.org/shining-light-award.

Email completed form to drses48@aol.com or Michelle.Kutch@bsd.k12.de.us.



July 18-20

Smithsonian National Education Summit - FREE Online or In-person

Together We Thrive: Fostering a Sense of Belonging

The Smithsonian offers 3 days of free skill-building workshops for teachers. 

Earn a Professional Development Certificate for your participation hours. 

For more information, click here. To register, click here.

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July 20-29

Delaware State Fair

During the annual 10-day State Fair, find your favorite fair treat, explore agricultural exhibits,

catch some great live music, shop at the marketplace, and experience other festivities.

18500 South Dupont Highway, Harrington, Delaware 19952

For information about fair times, events, exhibits and center ice arena, click here.

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July 25 • 10am

ChristianaCare Gene Editing Institute Learning Lab - Virtual Info Session

The Learning Lab is a FREE program for 11th & 12th grade students and their

teachers to explore the innovative world of genome science and CRISPR technology.

To attend, send an RSVP email to Amanda Hewes, Education Program Manager at:

geneeditinginstitute@christianacare.org

 ……………………………………………………………

July 25-27

Delaware Math Coalition (DMC) - Math Camp

This summer’s DMC Math Camp will be held at the Virden Center in Lewes, DE.

It is designed to support secondary and post-secondary math educators in their

efforts to promote more problem-based, student-thinking centered classrooms. 

For more information, click here. To register, click here.

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August 8 • 9am-11:30am

DASEF Exploration: Periscopes and Light Houses

Hosted by the Delaware AeroSpace Education Foundation

585 Big Oak Road, Smyrna, Delaware 19977

$6.00/person. 2 hour exploration.

To schedule, call 302.834.1978 or DASEF at 302.659.5003

or email Lynne Bloom at LynneB@dasef.org. For more information, click here.

 ……………………………………………………………

Save the Date! October 13, 2023

Delaware Mathematics & STEM Equity Conferences

A powerful day of professional learning dedicated to Equity in Math and STEM.

Sponsored by the Delaware Mathematics Coalition & Delaware Department of Education.

 ……………………………………………………………

Save the Date! November 9, 2023

The 9th Annual Delaware STEM Educator Awards Ceremony

Live Zoom Videocast from Buena Vista Country Estate in New Castle, Delaware

Co-hosted by Delaware STEM Council and DFSME, the event announces winners at the

Elementary School (K-5), Middle School (6-8) and High School (9-12) levels, the

Community Educator Award, the Jon Manon STEAM Team Educator Award and more!

For more information, click here.

To apply for the 2023 Delaware STEM Educator Awards, click here.

DFSME thanks the following organizations for contributions to STEM education in Delaware.

STEM Legacy

DuPont | LabWare

STEM Heritage

Ashland | Mountaire Farms | Verizon

STEM Sustainer

Bloom Energy

STEM Network

Agilent Technologies | American Chemical Society Delaware Section | Croda

Delmarva Power an Exelon Company | Walmart

STEM Business

Autumn Arch

STEM Friends

Delaware Math Coalition | Delaware STEM Council | Wilmington Urban STEM Initiative

STEM Gifts in Kind

Chesapeake Utilities | ChristianaCare | Corteva Agriscience

Delaware Department of Education | Delaware Design Company | Delaware Technical Community College Delaware Nature Society | DelawareBio | Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control

EDiS | FAME, Inc. | ILC Dover | Junior Achievement | Million Women Mentors

Stroud Water Research Center | University of Delaware | Whisman Giordano & Associates

Delaware Foundation for Science and Math Education

100 W. 10th Street, Suite 612 

Wilmington, DE 19801 

Tel: 302.397.0034 | Fax: 302.397.0036 

Email: anne.dfsme@gmail.com

www.dfsme.org

©2023 Delaware Foundation for Science and Math Education

501(c)(3) Education nonprofit dealing with K-16 STEM education in Delaware schools.