News
UTeach Dallas Associate Director Earns National Honor
July 9, 2021 UT Dallas News Amanda Siegfried
Katherine Donaldson MAT’93, associate director of the UTeach Dallas program at The University of Texas at Dallas, has received the 2021 Outstanding Master Teacher Award from the UTeach STEM Educators Association.
The association represents 46 UTeach programs at universities across the country that prepare college students to become secondary teachers in science and mathematics.
The honor, awarded at the association’s national conference in June, recognizes demonstrated excellence by UTeach master teachers, who are highly experienced content experts in their fields of instruction and strong, hands-on advocates for best teaching practices and professional development among in-service teachers.
Donaldson has been a master teacher and faculty member in the UT Dallas Department of Science/Mathematics Education in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics since 2009.
State Commends UTeach Dallas for Producing STEM Teachers
May 5, 2021 UT Dallas News
UT Dallas and the UTeach Dallas program in the Department of Science and Mathematics Education in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics recently received commendation from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for effectively addressing the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teacher shortage in the state, specifically citing the program’s production of mathematics teachers.
UTeach Students Go Extra Mile Online for Future Employers
When the COVID-19 pandemic closed K-12 schools in North Texas, three University of Texas at Dallas seniors in the UTeach Dallas program took the initiative to help their mentor teachers in area school districts transition to online learning. Now each has been hired at the same school where they performed their student teaching.
Texas Teacher Represents NMSI At National Science Conference
August 9, 2019 National Math and Science Initiative Page
Texas teacher and UTeach Dallas alum Brittany Medford traveled with NMSI to the National Science Teaching Association STEM Forum & Expo to share her experience in UTeach and NMSI’s Laying the Foundation with teachers across the country.
UTeach Dallas Alum Earns Association Award
Amiee Himler receiving her award from Jo Hamilton at the UTeach- USEA Conference, 2019
May 2019 UTeach Institute Conference Program
OUTSTANDING ALUMNUS AWARD: AMIEÉ HIMLER
UTeach Dallas Graduate, Secondary Math Specialist, Richardson Independent School District
Amieé Himler graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2010 with a B.S. in Mathematics and completed her teacher certification program through UTeach Dallas in spring 2011. She will graduate with her M.A.T. in Mathematics Education in May 2019. Amieé is the Secondary Math Specialist for Richardson ISD, where she has spent her entire career thus far. Prior to this role, she was a high school math teacher, department chair, curriculum writer and professional learning presenter. Her commitment and passion for supporting students and teachers is infectious, and it extends into the UTeach Dallas Program. Amieé continues to give back by serving as a mentor teacher to current UTeach Dallas students, as well as leading workshops for teachers in their first three years of teaching. She exemplifies what it means to be an outstanding student, teacher, and leader to her peers.
UTeach Dallas Staff Member Earns Association Award
August 29, 2018 UT Dallas Intercom
Dr. Kim Distin MAT’09, program coordinator, materials manager and intern coordinator for UTeach Dallas, recently received the 2018 Outstanding Staff Award from the UTeach STEM Educators Association.
Distin has been the program coordinator for UTeach Dallas since its inception in 2007. Her duties include overseeing class, lab and lesson materials management; web and social media; data reports; and alumni tracking. Before joining the UTeach Dallas program, she taught high school science in the Dallas area for 10 years.
Based in the Department of Science/Mathematics Education, UTeach Dallas prepares science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers for U.S. classrooms. The program allows college students majoring in STEM fields to combine their degrees with secondary teaching certifications without adding time or cost.
UTeach Dallas Project Spawns Partnership with Texas Parks and Wildlife.
Alluring Middle School Lesson Plans Combine Bass Fishing, Conservation to Teach Science, Math
January 29, 2018 UT Dallas News
The University of Texas at Dallas is partnering with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on a project that incorporates bass fishing and conservation into science and math curricula for middle schoolers.
The project began last year as lesson plans drafted by UT Dallas students as part of their training to become science and math teachers. The students were in a program called UTeach Dallas, where undergraduates earn their degrees in a STEM field — science, technology, engineering and math — concurrently with teacher training and certification. Many graduates go on to teach in North Texas schools and earn master’s degrees.
Each year, teams of those students are challenged to design science and math lessons that meet state standards.
Last spring, UTeach Dallas instructors added a twist to the challenge: Design a unit of lessons that could be used in the classroom to complement the Toyota ShareLunker bass conservation program, which is run by the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
UTeach Dallas Celebrates 10th Anniversary
May 5, 2017 City of Richardson – Week in Review
UT Dallas’ UTeach program marked its 10th anniversary today (and the 20th anniversary of the national UTeach program) with a celebration at Berkner High School. Special guests, including Richardson Mayor Pro Tem Mark Solomon, and media representatives were invited to visit classrooms to see the program in action and learn about its positive impacts. UTeach, which began at UT Austin in 1997 and expanded to UT Dallas in 2007, strives to rectify the shortage of qualified U.S. workers available to fill jobs in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) by encouraging STEM majors to become teachers. Area school districts, including RISD, help train the STEM majors by providing teaching internships, and eventually hire many of the graduates. (There are 24 UT Dallas graduates currently teaching at RISD schools.)
Friday’s event included a visit to an engineering class taught by a UT Dallas graduate, where students demonstrated the use and importance of engineering automation and discussed skill sets needed for those planning careers in STEM. About 370 UT Dallas students participate in the program each year, reaching 38,000 area secondary students since the program began.
3D Models Become Integral Visualization Aids for Calculus Students
February 6 , 2017 UT Dallas News
… “I’d been thinking about how to solve this visualization problem, and I read the title of a blog post about 3-D printing your own flip-flops,” Zweck said. “I realized, if you can print your own flip-flops, you can print anything.” That year, the National Science Foundation announced a call for researchers to improve the success of first- and second-year STEM students in mathematics courses. Dr. Mary Urquhart, the head of the Department of Science and Mathematics Education in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Dr. Susan Minkoff, a professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences who also teaches Multivariable Calculus, already shared an NSF grant with Zweck that supported the UTeach Dallas Robert Noyce Scholarship Program. “We partnered with Dr. Urquhart to secure an $80,000 supplement to the Noyce award,” Zweck said. “That paid for the models to be produced, and for the undergraduate teaching assistants that help facilitate our small-group problem-solving sessions.”… Read 3D models
This story was also referenced in a Dallas Morning News article on 3D Printing: Why some North Texas hospitals are turning to 3-D technology to prep for surgery .
UT Dallas Joins National Network to Grow STEM Teaching Force
March 21, 2016 UT Dallas News Center
UT Dallas has been selected to join a national network of organizations and universities dedicated to bringing 100,000 new exceptional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) teachers into classrooms by 2021.
The University’s Department of Science and Mathematics Education, housed in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, recently joined 100Kin10, a network of more than 280 businesses, nonprofits, foundations and academic institutions aimed at recruiting, preparing and retaining K-12 STEM teachers. Read STEM Teaching Force
University Plants Seeds of Science at Dallas Arboretum for Earth Day
April 16, 2015
More than 50 faculty and students from the UT Dallas School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics will be cultivating budding scientists this month when they present dozens of activities for children at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. In celebration of Earth Day, the Dallas Arboretum’s Rory Meyers Children’s Adventure Garden partnered with the University to stage science and mathematics activities for K-12 students from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday at the garden. Each activity is run by a different UT Dallas group or an external collaborator. … Faculty from the departments of biological sciences, physics, and science and math education also will participate. Representatives from UTeach Dallas, an academic program at the University that trains science and math teachers, will also be on hand. …
5 More Universities Will Create STEM Teacher-Training Programs
Feb 2, 2014 U.S. News & World Report
Universities are responding to President Obama’s State of the Union call to better educate the future workforce. Five more universities will start UTeach programs in the fall of 2014 to simultaneously award undergraduates STEM degrees and teaching credentials.
A Dozen Universities Share $12 Million to Bolster the UTeach Program
April 18, 2013 The Dallas Morning News
The National Math and Science Initiative has awarded $12 million in challenge grants to UTeach programs at 12 universities.
Each school will get $1 million to help implement the program, which recruits and trains college students to become math and science teachers.
The schools are Florida State University, Louisiana State University, Northern Arizona University, Temple University, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Irvine, University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Florida, University of Houston, University of North Texas, University of Texas at Dallas and Western Kentucky University.
The grants were announced at an event at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas. Read Dozen Universities
UTeach is Transforming Teacher Preparation in North Texas
April 3, 2013 National Math + Science Initiative Blog
A special event was held today at the Perot Museum of Science and Nature celebrating the impact of the UTeach program on education in the DFW area. The three UTeach programs in the North Texas region have experienced rapid growth in recent years:
- UTeach Dallas at UTD has grown from 24 students the first semester to its current 350 students, a 1350 percent increase. Recent graduates are all employed in school systems or science learning centers or have gone on the graduate school. The 100-plus graduates since the program’s inception could potentially impact about 79,000 middle and high school students by 2019.
UTeach Dallas Meets Fundraising Challenge, Receives $2 Million
Grants Will Further Advance Math and Science Teacher Training in Growing Program.
April 3, 2013
Dallas-area foundations and industry partners in science and technology have provided $2 million to support an innovative program at The University of Texas at Dallas aimed at training the teachers who will inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, doctors and entrepreneurs.
UTeach featured on NBC Nightly News
Published on Sept. 28, 2012.
Annual Physics Camp Aims to Hook Girls on Science
June 18, 2012 UT Dallas News Center
Giant slingshots, model rockets and home-made hot air balloons are all part of the plan at the annual UT Dallas Physics Camp for Girls to inspire more girls to study science.
Students Watch Venus Cross Between Earth and Sun
June 6, 2012 The Dallas Morning News
“As a planetary scientist, I am very excited about this. An astronomical phenomenon like this is a very rare event, and it will also coincide with the research found with NASA’s Kepler [telescope].” — Dr. Mary Urquhart, head of the Department of Science and Mathematics Education
Math and Science Teacher Program Gets a Boost
JPMorgan Chase Makes $50,000 Gift to Support UT Dallas Certification Plan
April 18, 2012
An innovative program at UT Dallas aimed at improving the quality of math and science teachers recently received part of a $200,000 grant from JPMorgan Chase through the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI).
UTeach Grad Strives To Build Science Excitement
Feb. 8, 2012
UTeach alumnus Gianfranco Herrera knows kids can be a tough crowd when he is presenting one of his science demonstrations. But more often than not, they’re in awe.
Grant Aids Push to Train Math and Science Teachers
Dec. 1, 2011
UT Dallas’ efforts to train and support top-notch science and math teachers in traditionally underserved areas has received a big boost, thanks to a grant that provides tuition support and training resources. The Teacher Enhancement Academy in Mathematics and Science (TEAMS) provides tuition support of $480,000 for 30 educators currently teaching in high-needs schools who have committed to remaining with those schools an additional two years after completing their master’s degrees.
TI Program Energizes Science and Math Teachers
July 25, 2011 Eighteen educators from area school districts spent part of their summer at UT Dallas in a program sponsored by Texas Instruments to improve the teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
UT Dallas Wins Communications Awards – UT Dallas News
For the third year in a row, the UT Dallas Office of Communications has earned multiple awards for innovative print design projects in a contest judged by peers in higher education…
A poster promoting the UTeach program was awarded silver in the Visual Design – Poster category, and the UT Teach Banner took bronze in the Visual Design – Illustration category.
Obama Launches Initiative to Train 100,000 New STEM Teachers
Feb. 8, 2011
During his State of the Union address in January 2011, President Obama “announced an initiative to train 100,000 new teachers in mathematics, science, technology, and engineering, or STEM subjects. He plans to expand ‘promising and effective teacher preparation models’ for STEM teachers.”
Teachers working to boost science emphasis to overcome lagging interest, lower test scores
Aug. 12, 2010 The Dallas Morning News
…. In middle and high school teachers probably have a degree in some science but may be teaching out of their field because of the shortage of science teachers, he said. Texas teachers can be certified as a generalist in high school science. That means they may have a degree in chemistry but be teaching biology. Time is also an issue.
“To teach a subject like cell division, I can tell a student everything they need in a couple of days. But for them to actually see it, to see the cell mitosis, to count the number of cells – I can’t devote that time,” said Bill Neal. He heads the UTeach program at the University of Texas at Dallas.
The UTeach programs – Hale will lead one at UTA starting this fall – are working to bring more science and math majors into teaching. They also concentrate on innovative teaching methods….
President Obama Mentions UTeach in National Address
April 21, 2010
“And we also need to reward states that are placing outstanding teachers in schools and subjects — like math and science — where they’re needed most. That’s one way to foster the next generation of math and science teachers. And by the way, everyone has a role to play in training these teachers. So universities and nonprofit organizations can launch programs like UTeach at UT Austin that allows aspiring teachers to get a math or science degree and teaching certificate at the same time. And businesses can follow the examples of Intel and Microsoft by developing the software tools and cutting-edge technologies that prepare today’s students to be tomorrow’s teachers…”
Gift to Boost Ranks of Math and Science Teachers
Feb. 9, 2010
A $500,000 gift from the O’Donnell Foundation will support the UTeach Dallas endowment and provide flexibility to support scholarships, internships, and other aspects of the program.
UTeach Dallas Awarded Support for Master Teachers
Texas Instruments Foundation Funding to Help Mentor Future Science Teachers
Sept. 10, 2009
Increasing the supply of qualified math and science teachers in America’s secondary schools received a big boost Wednesday when the Texas Instruments (TI) Foundation awarded a $450,000 grant to UTeach Dallas.
UTeach Dallas Lauded as a Bridge to the Future
Tech Titan Award Recognizes Program to Interest Students in Math and Sciences
Sept. 1, 2009
The Metroplex Technology Business Council (MTBC), the largest technology trade organization in Texas, has awarded UTeach Dallas the 2009 Tech Titan of the Future award in the university category at a ceremony. The award recognizes educational programs designed to address critical shortages of students interested in technology disciplines. UTeach Dallas was created to increase the number of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) majors interested in becoming new secondary science or mathematics teachers. Replicated at 14 universities around the country, the original UTeach program was founded at UT Austin.
Grant Means More Masterful Math, Science Teaching
Funding to Help 25 Experienced Teachers Earn Grad Degrees and 25 Undergraduates to Mentor With Them
July 31, 2009
Science and mathematics education in Texas will soon enjoy a major boost, thanks to a $699,663 grant from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The grant award stems from the Coordinating Board’s Educator Quality Division and supports a proposal put forth by Dr. Robert C. Hilborn, head of UT Dallas’s Science/Mathematics Education Department, and a team of 11 UT Dallas faculty educators.
Nobel Prof Gives Schools High-Powered Science Help
Physicist says Project-Based Learning Helps Build Interest and Aptitude Early
May 28, 2009
The scientist who co-discovered the first binary pulsar is tackling a new challenge these days: how to invigorate science education in the nation’s K-12 classrooms. Dr. Russell Hulse, along with Dr. Joe Taylor from Princeton University, received the 1993 Nobel Prize in physics for discovering two dense, collapsed stars closely orbiting each other. One of these stars is a pulsar, which can be detected by its emission of regular pulses of radio waves. The discovery of the first binary pulsar provided the first way to test Albert Einstein’s prediction that moving objects emit gravitational waves. … UT Dallas also has four of its UTeach students participating in the classrooms, helping the teachers and the students. …
NSF Grant Supports Teacher Training Initiative
$749,225 Earmarked for Science and Math Majors Participating in UTeach
Oct. 2, 2008
UT Dallas has received a $749,225 grant from the National Science Foundation to support The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program. Named in honor of the co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and of Intel, the Robert Noyce program will provide five years of summer research stipends and internships and 45 $10,000 scholarships for UT Dallas science and mathematics majors who intend to become K-12 teachers.
Foundation Gift Helps UT Dallas Scholars Thrive
July 10, 2008
The Greater Texas Foundation has given $200,000 to support three key UT Dallas programs. This gift will provide need-based scholarships to students in the Academic Bridge Program and to community college students transferring to UT Dallas through the Comet Connection program. The gift will also offer program support for UTeach Dallas. Read Foundation Gift
UTeach, UT Dallas To Help Close Math and Science Gap
Dec. 6, 2007
From former Texas Governor Rick Perry’s office press release:
DALLAS – Gov. Rick Perry today participated in the presentation of a $2.4 million grant over five years from the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) to the University of Texas (UT) at Dallas to replicate the UTeach program, which will certify UT Dallas undergraduates to become high school math and science teachers. UT Dallas is one of 12 sites nationally to be awarded a replication grant. “Texas is once again leading the nation with winning ideas, such as the UTeach program, which will help us close the math and science gap in today’s schools, before it becomes a salary gap in tomorrow’s workplace and an opportunity gap for Texas families.”
Aiming to Multiply Math, Science Teachers (pdf)
UTD Founds Training Program with Funds from Dallas Nonprofit
Dec. 5, 2007 The Dallas Morning News
Math and science whizzes aren’t necessarily good at teaching. And teachers don’t always know their calculus or chemistry.
The University of Texas at Dallas aims to marry those skills with a new teacher training program that campus officials will announce today. The program, modeled after one at UT-Austin, is designed to address a shortage of math and science teachers and ultimately turn more young people on to careers in those fields. \
