Category: Supporting Educators

ISP helps teachers bring university research to life in classrooms

With the help of the university’sWith the help of the university’s Institute for School Partnership, chemist Bryce Sadtler in Arts & Sciences has been supporting local high school science teachers since 2015. Teachers such as Brittany Daugs (right) spent time on campus this summer conducting hands-on research., chemist Bryce Sadtler in Arts & Sciences has been supporting local high school science teachers since 2015. Teachers such as Brittany Daugs spent time on campus this summer conducting hands-on research.

ISP program helps math students find new ways to solve real-world problems

Institute for School Partnership’s STEM District Immersion program helps students form a deep conceptual understanding to math that goes far beyond rote problem-solving. By posing real-world problems, students engage in high-level math discourse, explore multiple solutions and take intellectual risks. Read more at the Institute for School Partnership.

ISP pilots science program in SLPS

Last summer, four organizations came together to launch a new program in 17 St. Louis Public elementary schools. The Institute for School Partnership (ISP), The Little Bit Foundation (TLBF), and St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS), with funding from the Bayer Fund, developed a pilot program to increase capacity for STEM teaching and learning in SLPS. The program is designed to remove barriers for teachers and provide access to high-quality, hands-on STEM education for St. Louis City students

Meeting the complexities of the times, together

Washington University wants to not only be “in St. Louis,” but “for St. Louis.” With that call to action, the university is taking its commitment to be a good partner in the region to another level.

Class Acts: Theresa Matheus, Gateway Middle Science Teacher

Class Acts, Washington University’s annual celebration of outstanding graduates, spotlights Theresa Matheaus, science teacher at Gateway Middle School. Matheus earned her master’s in teaching and learning from University College and is part of the St. Louis Teacher Residency, an initiative to reduce teacher turnover and improve teacher quality in high-needs schools.

Building Pathways: U. City embraces distributed leadership

The School District of University City has taken a big leap in developing the next generation of transformational school leaders. Last summer, it named Jessica Hawkins and Deitra Colquitt co-principals of Pershing Elementary School. Both served as Teacher Instructional Leaders prior to their advancement. They credit the Transformational Leadership Initiative, a multi-year effort designed to […]

St. Louis Teacher Residency helps teachers thrive in high-needs classrooms

WashU alumni partnered with their alma mater to improve teacher quality and retention. the program gives teachers the skills to support high-needs students and build effective lessons while deepening their own knowledge of the subjects they teach. Residents work at St. Louis Public Schools, KIPP: St. Louis and other schools.

ISP launches middle school COVID-19 curriculum

The Institute for School Partnership (ISP) at Washington University in St. Louis has launched a comprehensive COVID-19 curriculum. The free unit boasts both synchronous and asynchronous elements and helps students understand the history of infectious disease, the nature of COVID-19, the power and limitations of modeling and the importance of scientific literacy.

Pivoting & Partnering: ISP’s response to COVID-19

From creating a new COVID-19 curriculum for middle school students to providing free STEM activities and supplies for families, the Institute for School Partnership (ISP) at Washington University in St. Louis is working hard to guarantee children continue to learn during the COVID-19 crisis.

ISP and The Little Bit Foundation provide free STEM material

The Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis wants to keep STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) learning going for the tens of thousands of homebound students in St. Louis City and St. Louis County by providing them with STEM classroom activities that they can do at home. The ISP has partnered with The Little Bit Foundation (TLBF) to develop and distribute STEM Challenges for students and families participating in school-based drive-thru meal service programs. Since 2018, ISP and TLBF have collaborated to offer project-based STEM learning to the classroom through its mySci Do programming.

ISP to improve math education in local schools through Math314

Stagnant scores, frustrated students, daunted educators — such is the state of math education across the nation and in the region. That’s why the Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis is introducing Math314, an innovative program that will improve math instruction and boost students’ enthusiasm for the subject.  

Who will teach tomorrow’s coders

High school students need computer science skills, but who will teach them? The Institute for School Partnership is addressing Missouri’s desperate shortage of computer science educators through the Code.org professional learning program, which prepares educators with no coding experience to lead computer science classes. The need is urgent: only one-third of Missouri high schools offer computer science.

Everyday MySci: Nurturing your child’s natural sense of wonder

From the playground to the pool to the ballpark, science is all around us. Through its Everyday MySci activities, the Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis helps parents nurture their child’s natural sense of curiosity, wonder and discovery.

WashU offers tuition assistance program for surrounding districts

University College, the professional and continuing education division of Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, is now offering a 50 percent discount to full-time employees of St. Louis, Clayton and University City and their school districts. Charter school employees also are eligible.

ISP pilots technology curriculum MySci Do

Students piloting MySciDo

Several schools in the St. Louis Public Schools district are piloting a new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum and teacher training program called mySci Do. It’s modeled on mySci’s distribution protocol and was designed to apply those methods to technology education. mySci Do is funded by a grant from the Monsanto Fund, and developed by the ISP, Maryville University School of Education, The Little Bit Foundation and The Disruption Department.

Creating a new generation of educators

Good teachers make for engaged students and stable schools. That’s why Washington University is partnering with the St. Louis Teacher Residency program to address two of the most vexing problems facing high-needs schools: teacher turnover and teacher quality.

Celebrating science at the ISP’s annual Darwin Day

A life-size cutout of Charles Darwin stands in the corner. Next to him are party hats and a selfie stick. His face adorns a birthday cake that’s wheeled out to much excitement. Numbers are read and fossils are raffled off. Attendees sport buttons that read “I love evolution” and “Team Darwin.”

This isn’t your ordinary Saturday morning professional development day. This is the Institute for School Partnership’s sixth annual Darwin Day celebration.

WashU alum named Missouri Biology Teacher of the Year

Ryan Lacson, a 2013 graduate of the Master of Science in Biology for Science Teachers program at Washington University in St. Louis, has been named the 2017 Missouri Outstanding Biology Teacher of the Year by the National Association of Biology Teachers. Lacson is a science teacher at Galena High School in Galena, Mo. Read more at The Institute for School Partnership.