UK NOYCE: New Opportunities Yeilding Classroom Excellence, Phase II

UK-NOYCE Mathematics and Science Fellowship Program seeks to attract twenty additional senior class students and practicing professionals in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to become credentialed secondary mathematics and science teachers in order to increase student achievement in the STEM areas and to encourage K-12 students to pursue STEM majors and careers. UK-NOYCE recipients will be expected to teach secondary mathematics and science in selected districts, which meet high needs criteria. The general program objectives for the project period are as follows: (1) Attract students and practicing professionals in the STEM disciplines into Secondary Education. (2) Make available to these students an integrated range of support services designed to enhance academic success, for example, collaborative advising from the College of Education, College of Arts and Sciences, and the College of Engineering. (3) Increase the number of graduates in Secondary Science and Mathematics Education. The following specific aims are designed to achieve these three overarching objectives: (1) Ensure scholars are of high academic ability by requiring a minimum GPA of 3.0, which is maintained throughout their participation in the Masters of Arts in Education with Initial Certification (MIC) program. (2) Make a strong effort to recruit traditionally underrepresented groups in the STEM disciplines (women, minorities, and disabled students) into the UK-NOYCE Fellows Program. (3) Encourage and support all UK-NOYCE Fellows to complete their degrees within one calendar year of entering the MIC program. (4) Assist UK-NOYCE Fellows in obtaining secondary teaching positions in the targeted regions of Kentucky, especially Appalachia.