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About the Bio-Chem Mentors

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Director:

Linda Hobart
hobartll@flcc.edu
585-394-3500
ex 7326

Asst Director:

Lee A. Drake
drakela@flcc.edu

BIOLOGY-CHEMISTRY PROFESSIONAL NETWORK

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of the New York State Biology-Chemistry Professional Development Network, formerly known as the New York State Biology-Chemistry Mentor Network, is to foster ongoing professional growth in for pre-service, new, and veteran science educators. The Network develops and disseminates innovative, student- centered teaching strategies and content modules to enable students to meet New York State’s MST Standards. This network promotes equity in meeting the needs of diverse student populations through state-wide collaboration of biology and chemistry teachers.

DESCRIPTION

The Biology-Chemistry Network has been developing educational materials and providing in-service training to biology and chemistry teachers since 1991. The Biology and Chemistry Mentor Networks were formerly separate entities and merged in 1997.

The network is made up of master teachers who serve as coordinating mentors and local mentors. The coordinating mentors train local mentors who come from a cross section of schools across the state. Both coordinating and local mentors present workshops and assist in professional development, training local teachers across the state.

Coordinating mentors receive training from experts in instructional strategies and content. The coordinating mentors use their teaching expertise and training skills to develop workshop materials for the local mentors to turnkey at their home schools and local region. The fall and spring workshop sessions provide professional development for the local mentors, by modeling the workshops they will present to their local teachers. The coordinating mentors act as resource agents for biology and chemistry mentors across the state. At the two-day winter meeting and five-day summer meeting coordinating mentors receive training and plan and develop materials for the three workshops. Coordinating mentors receive 40 hours of training and spend an additional 40 hours training local mentors.

Workshop materials are teacher ready activities that stress content, effective strategies and research-based best practices that promote student learning. All materials produced are designed to value equity and diversity to increase the ability to meet the needs of all students. The materials developed by this program can be embedded directly into the school’s science curricula and supports the requirements of the core curricula.

Local mentors provide professional development training through multiple workshops designed to meet the needs of local teachers. This links science teachers throughout the state. To further communication, we have incorporated our tools into existing teacher preparation programs.