The ConocoPhillips Applied Math Program (AMP!) at Rice University celebrated 10 years of professional development and inquiry learning at its closing ceremony for the academic year, the AMPosium! Sponsored by ConocoPhillips and the Rice Office of STEM Engagement (R-STEM), the program’s organizers welcomed more than 150 attendees composed of past, current and future AMP! participants who gathered at the BioScience Research Collaborative April 6 to mark the occasion.
AMP!, a free and year-long professional development program, provides instructional stipends and materials for fifth-ninth grade teachers and offers innovative teaching strategies that ignite inquiry in the classroom to improve science and math education in Houston-area middle schools while also aligning with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills teaching standards.
Master of Ceremonies Roger Ramirez, associate director for mathematics and engineering education at Rice, orchestrated the space-themed event and honored the legacy of science educator and Rice employee Ericka Lawton with a moment of silence.
Among the breakout sessions were a 10-foot high, 360-degree discovery dome experience celebrating this year’s solar eclipse, lessons on Canva design and the Rubik’s Cube as well as how to guard skin from harmful UV rays with protective fashion. Poster sessions featured lessons developed by the 2023-24 AMP! cohort, followed by an awards presentation.
Among the honorees accepting their AMP! Innovation Awards from ConocoPhillips were Andriana Sanchez-Cantu of Bel Nafegar Sanchez Elementary, Rajni Dhadral of Harmony School of Innovation, Andrea Jacobsen of Twin Creeks Middle School and Kari Ollis of De Zavala Elementary.
The AMP! program is now accepting online applications for the 2024-25 school year at research.rice.edu/rstem/amp.
(Photos by Alexcia Perez)
