MTSU Awarded $2.7M Grant to Improve High School Biology

April 22, 2009, WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Bart Gordon announced today that the National Science Foundation awarded Middle Tennessee State University a $2.7 million grant to improve biology education in Rutherford County and Metro Nashville high schools.

“Jobs of the future will necessitate a strong educational foundation in the sciences,” said Congressman Bart Gordon who has long supported improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education.  “This grant will bring biology graduate students, high school teachers, and industry experts together, all with the express purpose of instilling a better understanding of science in high school students.”

MTSU will partner with Tennessee State University and use the $2.7 million GK-12 project grant to support nine STEM Graduate Fellows each year, over the next five years, to share an enhanced understanding of advances in the field of biology with high school teachers and their students.  Specifically, the main objectives of the project are to (1) bring graduate fellows’ enthusiasm for research into the classroom; (2) actually mentor student research projects; and, (3) incorporate biotechnology applications into the science curriculum.

Dr. Tony Farone from MTSU’s Biology Department, who is the grant’s principal investigator, explained, “We believe this approach will be very effective and sustainable.  Our team is looking forward to working together to train future STEM scientists who will find communicating science to the general public and K-12 outreach a natural part of their career.”

“Studies have shown that average math and science scores for U.S. students trail significantly behind nearly all countries in the Asia Pacific region,” added Gordon.  “Programs like this are essential to reversing the tide and developing a 21st Century workforce in America.”

Gordon authored a landmark law in 2007, titled the America COMPETES Act, which created programs designed to further improve STEM education.  The law helps prepare thousands of new teachers by offering scholarships to students who major in math or science and education and commit to becoming teachers upon graduation. The COMPETES Act also provides current teachers with content and teaching skills through summer training institutes.