PRESS RELEASE

First Hand Learning to Develop Mentoring Program For City Kids

Grant will provide funds for the development of an innovative after-school science program for young adolescents.

(April 20, 2005 – Buffalo, NY) First Hand Learning, Inc. (FHL) announced today the receipt of a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to develop a national model for an after-school science program based in Community Centers that pairs urban adolescents with adult mentors. The goal of the project, named Science Firsthand, is to inspire urban youth to pursue careers in the sciences and science-related occupations. The project is a partnership between First Hand Learning, the St. Louis Science Center, and the National Wildlife Federation. William Rogers, FHL’s Director of Out of School Programs, will head the project in collaboration with Diane Miller, Director of Public and Community Programs at the St. Louis Science Center. Based on a program first pioneered by the Buffalo Zoo and the Buffalo Public Schools, the project will support youth and adult partners in the pursuit of collaborative science investigations under the guidance of professional scientists.

“We are thrilled to have this opportunity to build a national network of community-based organizations and informal science institutions that will offer rich science learning opportunities to urban adolescents,” stated First Hand Learning president Peter Dow. “Last year, we worked with the Zoo’s Education Staff and the Zoo Magnet School faculty as participants in a science mentoring program for 7th and 8th grade students. When we saw how engaged students became in science during the Zoo program, we thought that science-focused mentoring programs housed in community-based organizations would fly in other cities. The NSF apparently agreed.”
Science Firsthand will be developed in Buffalo in collaboration with the Bob Lanier Center, The Bridge To Building Community, Fillmore-Leroy Area Residents Association, the Gloria J. Parks Community Center, the Matt Urban Center, the Parkside Community Association, and the Valley Community Center. Following the pilot development phase in Buffalo and St. Louis the project will be field tested in Newark, Detroit, and Seattle. The National Wildlife Federation will play a major role in national distribution.
The project will be guided by a National Advisory Committee of science educators chaired by Karen Worth of Wheelock College. An Advisory Committee of local scientists will be chaired by Zoo President Dr. Donna Fernandes. In addition to Fernandes, several local scientists have agreed to serve as advisors including psychologist Dr. Lisa Brooks of Buffalo State College, biologists Dr. Michael Noonan and Dr. Sara Morris of Canisius College, and entomologist Dr. Wayne Gall of the State Heath Department. Others interested in joining the project either as mentors or scientist-advisors should contact David Hartney, Managing Director, First Hand Learning. The Program Evaluation Group of Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts will provide formative evaluation and research the impact of the program on the science achievement of the participants.
Dow concluded, “This is a great chance to engage city kids in serious science.”
First Hand Learning is a non-profit corporation founded in 1998 to promote inquiry-based teaching, learning from direct experience, and closer links between cultural institutions and schools.

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