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Chicago Tribune
an hour ago
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Area students win state teaching scholarships
Thirteen Northwest Indiana students have received a Next Generation Hoosier Educators Scholarship from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. They're among 300 winners across the state, according to a release. Through a competitive application process based on academic achievement and additional criteria, the Next Generation Hoosier Educators Scholarship provides recipients with a renewable scholarship of up to $10,000 per year or up to $40,000. In exchange, students agree to teach for five years at an eligible Indiana school or repay the corresponding, prorated amount of the scholarship. 'The Next Generation Hoosier Educators Scholarship is a key strategy to build Indiana's future teacher workforce with high-quality talent. The students selected for this opportunity have the passion and determination to make a difference in classrooms across the state,' said Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Chris Lowery. To qualify for the scholarship, students must graduate in the top 20 percent of their high school class, earn a score in the 20th percentile on the SAT or ACT, or have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. To continue earning the scholarship in college, students must earn a 3.0 GPA and complete at least 30 credit hours per year. Local scholarship winners and their chosen colleges include: Lake County: Alexandra Magallanes, Bishop Noll Institute, St. Mary's College; Miles Verpooten, Crown Point High School, Ball State University; Charles Ganske, Hobart High School, Butler University; James Hairston, Hobart High School, Calumet College of St. Joseph; Emily Bantsolas, Illiana Christian High School, Anderson University; Joshua Wooge, Lake Central High School, Purdue University Northwest; Claire Benton, Lowell High School, Huntington University; Tionna Hall, Merrillville High School, Ball State University. Porter County: Myah Donovan, Hebron High School, Western Governors University Indiana; Juliana Guerrero, Chesterton High School, Purdue University Northwest; Olivia Miller, Kouts High School, Purdue University; Guinevere Lay, Portage High School, Ball State University; Noelle Gapinski, Valparaiso High School, Ball State University.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Trump's anti-DEI mandate will make it hard to recruit new scientists
For half of my 32 years as a professor of chemistry at Ball State University, I was involved in executing a National Science Foundation grant called the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program. Its aim was to encourage a broader participation in the sciences. The LSAMP program identified undergraduate college students who were underrepresented in the sciences and tried to assist them in progressing toward their STEM degree. A primary feature was to provide those students with summer research experiences working side-by-side with a faculty mentor. Repeatedly, studies have shown that research experiences are essential for undergraduates to identify as a scientist. The LSAMP program was extraordinarily successful, producing hundreds of new scientists over the course of its existence, all of whom were American citizens. The program did not interfere with, prohibit or reduce the historical population of undergraduates who participated in summer research or who became scientists. Sadly, the program, established by Congress over 30 years ago, has recently been dissolved, along with other vital programs, due to new guidance restricting federal grants relating to diversity, equity and inclusion. It is hard for some to understand that without a continuous, new source of scientific talent, the US cannot hold onto its economic growth and military security or ensure quality products in manufacturing. A myriad of industries, including paint, food, plastics, pharmaceuticals and aerospace who rely on a constant supply of American scientists expect a shortfall in the not-too distant future. It is difficult to see how we can meet our need for new talent in the sciences after stopping the successful LSAMP program. Patricia Lang is a professor emerita of chemistry at Ball State University. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Trump anti-DEI mandate will make it hard to recruit new scientists | Letters
Indianapolis Star
11-06-2025
- Science
- Indianapolis Star
Trump's anti-DEI mandate will make it hard to recruit new scientists
For half of my 32 years as a professor of chemistry at Ball State University, I was involved in executing a National Science Foundation grant called the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program. Its aim was to encourage a broader participation in the sciences. The LSAMP program identified undergraduate college students who were underrepresented in the sciences and tried to assist them in progressing toward their STEM degree. A primary feature was to provide those students with summer research experiences working side-by-side with a faculty mentor. Repeatedly, studies have shown that research experiences are essential for undergraduates to identify as a scientist. The LSAMP program was extraordinarily successful, producing hundreds of new scientists over the course of its existence, all of whom were American citizens. The program did not interfere with, prohibit or reduce the historical population of undergraduates who participated in summer research or who became scientists. Sadly, the program, established by Congress over 30 years ago, has recently been dissolved, along with other vital programs, due to new guidance restricting federal grants relating to diversity, equity and inclusion. It is hard for some to understand that without a continuous, new source of scientific talent, the US cannot hold onto its economic growth and military security or ensure quality products in manufacturing. A myriad of industries, including paint, food, plastics, pharmaceuticals and aerospace who rely on a constant supply of American scientists expect a shortfall in the not-too distant future. It is difficult to see how we can meet our need for new talent in the sciences after stopping the successful LSAMP program.
Chicago Tribune
22-05-2025
- Health
- Chicago Tribune
For Phoenix Bridegroom, Chesterton park benches are a community thank you after cancer
The four Friendship Benches being installed at Dogwood Park represent a meaningful marker in the life of their benefactor, Phoenix Bridegroom. Phoenix, 19, decided to raise funds and have the benches built for her Gold Award project with the Girl Scouts. They are scheduled to be installed soon, weather permitting. She will graduate June 5 from Chesterton High School and plans to start in August at Ball State University as a communications major, specializing in media production. But there's more to the project than four new benches in a park. Phoenix is the survivor of multiple bouts with acute lymphoblastic leukemia that first occurred when she was 5. She has been cancer-free for more than 6 years after doctors at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia successfully deployed what was then a new treatment option. 'I want to give back to the community because they did so much for me growing up,' Phoenix said. The Friendship Benches each have a simple question, aimed at generating conversations for children between the ages of 6 and 12. Phoenix remembers feeling like an outsider when she was younger because the leukemia flare-ups caused her to feel isolated at times. 'I was uncomfortable with socializing,' Phoenix said. 'I felt different from the kids, and I didn't know how to feel like that at that time.' Phoenix had to repeat kindergarten because she missed a school year after her initial leukemia diagnosis. 'The first time I didn't really have a recollection of what was happening,' Phoenix said. When Phoenix recovered the first time, she joined the Girl Scouts in kindergarten, and they have given her a sense of community ever since. It gave her a needed 'breather' from dealing with her illness at times and the opportunity to make friends. 'I could show more of my quirky side. I could learn more ways to get into my community better,' Phoenix said. Becky McGowan, the leader of Girl Scout Troop 30321, said that it's been a pleasure to have Phoenix in the troop all these years. Phoenix is petite in stature. But McGowan said people soon learn that she's assertive. 'This girl has spunk and attitude,' McGowan said. There are banners hanging on the front porch railing of the Bridegroom home, recognizing that Phoenix is graduating and Ball State bound. John Bridegroom, looking at the banners, acknowledges that he didn't know whether he would get to enjoy a moment like this. 'We've been blessed,' Bridegroom said. 'I can't imagine anything harder and for 10 years in our life, it was a real struggle. To be here and where we are is wonderful.' 'Having been in that world for a while, we saw lots of families that didn't have that kind of good fortune,' Bridegroom said. Phoenix went through a difficult time at age 9 in 2015, when the leukemia recurred. She was more aware of what was happening to her. She had a bone marrow transplant. The donor was Brett Kasper, a man she didn't know who was then playing quarterback at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. At the age of 10, Phoenix met Kasper and People magazine wrote a story about their meeting and their bond. Then, when Phoenix was 12, she went to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia where they were treating children suffering from leukemia with what was then cutting-edge cell therapy. Bridegroom said the local community has been incredibly supportive throughout. There were several fundraisers, like a spaghetti dinner put on by Peggy Sue's Diner. 'Chesterton as a community really stunned us,' Bridegroom said. 'The (Duneland) school system went above and beyond the call of duty.' Bridegroom said the Duneland School Corporation even sent tutors to Phoenix when she was hospitalized to ensure she kept up with her studies. One personal touch in elementary school was when a giant teddy bear was placed in Phoenix's seat whenever she was hospitalized. 'The giant teddy bear was in her seat so the kids wouldn't forget about her,' Bridegroom said. Bridegroom said that it was her daughter's idea to do the Friendship Benches. Phoenix raised $1,100 from donors for materials and got the Chesterton High School's building and trades students to construct the benches. Chesterton Parks Superintendent Tyler McLead said he's grateful to Phoenix for the time and effort she put into the project. 'Her Friendship Benches are more than just places to sit — they represent community, connection and kindness. Her project reflects a thoughtful understanding of how public spaces can foster inclusion and emotional well-being,' McLead said. Bridegroom said he's so grateful that Phoenix these past few years has been able to live a 'regular, healthy life.' 'She gets to go on and do the things that she's doing now,' Bridegroom said. 'She's not wasting that, which is wonderful.'
New York Times
22-05-2025
- Science
- New York Times
Funding Cuts Are a ‘Gut Punch' for STEM Education Researchers
Change continues to ripple through the National Science Foundation as it tries to comply with the policies and priorities of the Trump administration. But the branch of the agency that funds STEM education research is taking a disproportionate hit. STEM education research focuses on improving how students, from preschool to university, are trained in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. That encompasses everything from adopting better curriculums and teaching methods to changing the way schools and districts are run. Researchers say that the values encapsulated in diversity, equity and inclusion, or D.E.I., have been a focus in the field since long before the terms were strung into an acronym and popularized. 'The work of STEM education has always been about creating a bigger tent, giving access to more students of all backgrounds so that our STEM work force better reflects the diversity and demographics of the American public,' said Mike Steele, a math education researcher at Ball State University and a former program officer in the National Science Foundation's directorate of STEM education. More than 1,400 research grants at the foundation have been canceled since April, according to Grant Watch, a crowdsourced online database. As of May 7, awards for STEM education accounted for 54 percent of those terminations, a loss of $773 million in funding, which represents nearly three-fourths of the total dollar amount of terminated foundation grants. One canceled project aimed to use virtual reality to better engage high school students with autism in engineering. Another created hands-on programs for Indigenous youth to grow food using traditional knowledge and modern technology. A third intended to double the number of rural students earning associate's and bachelor's degrees in STEM across the Black Belt of Alabama. Experts in the field saw the grant cancellations as part of a broader attack on education, as well as on D.E.I., by the Trump administration. 'It was a gut punch,' said Julie Posselt, an associate dean of the graduate school at the University of Southern California, and a 'pretty profound confirmation' that the cuts were not about science writ large. 'It's about the association of educational research with interests and values that are at odds with the administration's priorities.' Dr. Posselt was a member of an advisory committee, dissolved in April, for the foundation's education directorate. This month, two of her grants from the agency, both supporting research on STEM graduate education, were cut. 'De-prioritizing STEM education is just a slightly delayed way of de-prioritizing STEM,' said Joe Champion, a math education researcher at Boise State University. He noted that it often took a decade or more of training for scientists to meaningfully contribute to cutting-edge programs. 'Reducing the quality of the training can't possibly be good for society,' he said. On May 9, the foundation announced that it was 'sunsetting' its division of equity for excellence in STEM, part of the agency's directorate for STEM education, 'to ensure our efforts align with our priorities,' according to a statement on the agency's website. (The foundation suspended this decision on May 12 in compliance with a temporary restraining order, according to internal records reviewed by The New York Times.) The move follows previous actions by the foundation to comply with an executive order issued by President Trump in January, which called for the elimination of D.E.I. across the federal government. A spokesman for the agency declined to comment on the grant terminations or the decision to close the division of equity for excellence in STEM. The federal government has worked to broaden participation of people from underrepresented groups in STEM since at least 1980, when Congress enacted the Science and Technology Equal Opportunities Act. The mandate authorized the foundation to support educational efforts to increase the number of women and racial minorities in STEM. In 2010, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act required the agency to include the increased participation of marginalized groups in STEM as part of its criteria for funding research. The agency began to adopt D.E.I. language more explicitly during the Biden administration. 'It was an emerging priority,' said Adrienne Dixson, an education researcher at Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Dixson was hired by the foundation in 2021 to help run its new racial equity in STEM education program. In 2022, the foundation hired its first chief diversity officer and renamed its education directorate, as well as the division of equity for excellence in STEM, to 'more accurately reflect and communicate' its values, including diversity and inclusion in STEM. But when Mr. Trump took office this year, the foundation began a review of current awards containing buzzwords commonly associated with D.E.I. In April, the agency announced that projects relying on 'D.E.I. frameworks or advocacy' did not represent its priorities, and the grant terminations began. The defunding comes amid broader shifts in education. That includes mass layoffs and hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to various components of the Department of Education, which Mr. Trump has tried to eliminate altogether. 'The broader attack here is on evidence,' said William Penuel, an education researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder. 'Without evidence, anyone can make up a story about how schools are doing and what they need to do.' One potential outcome of defunding a large portion of STEM education research is that the work may become more concentrated at larger universities that are able to provide alternative sources of funding. That's unfortunate, Dr. Champion said, as STEM education is often tailored to local and state-level priorities. 'When the research is done by just a few people in localized parts of the country, everyone else is tapping into incomplete information about what's the best way to teach and to learn, and what are the most effective materials to use,' he said. Researchers funded outside of the foundation's STEM education directorate — in physics, engineering, geoscience and more — face less extreme cuts. But they, too, are concerned about the financial support and educational preparation of students in STEM, many of whom would lead the next generation of scientific discoveries. 'STEM and STEM education research need to grow hand in hand,' Dr. Penuel said. 'And if we stop funding education research, they won't.'
