Regional Math and Science Center celebrates 25th anniversary

To celebrate 25 years of service to K-12 schools and the science and mathematics communities, Grand Valley State University’s Regional Math and Science Center will hold an open house September 23, from 3-6 p.m. in Mackinac Hall, suite C-1-120 on the Allendale Campus.

“The Regional Math and Science Center has strived to create a legacy of providing quality programs and services, focused on science and mathematics teaching and learning for both teachers and students,” said Karen Meyers, Regional Math and Science Center director.

Although the Regional Math and Science Center was created during the 1990-91 academic year, Grand Valley’s science and mathematics division has existed since 1980.

Mary Ann Sheline, grant coordinator and former director of the Regional Math and Science Center, said at the time, teachers connected to their favorite professor or department to arrange for student visits and campus tours. In 1983, the science and mathematics division attempted to bring more organization to their efforts.

At the same time, Michigan became one of only two states to hold a Science Olympiad competition. Grand Valley capitalized on this new event by creating the Region 12 Science Olympiad Tournament as a way to bring the competing students to the university for a fun and educational experience.

The success of the Science Olympiad led to the creation of the Science and Math Update Seminar — a regional professional development conference for science and mathematics teachers — and the Coalition for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Education. The Coalition coordinated the efforts of science and mathematics educators and worked to connect the K-16 community to businesses and formal science groups, such as museums and zoos among others.

With Grand Valley’s strong commitment to outreach activities in science and mathematics, and professors who gave their time and expertise to interact with K-12 students and teachers, the Grand Valley Science and Math Center was established in the 1990-91 academic year.

Around the same time, the State of Michigan began to fund regional mathematics and science centers to promote high quality science and mathematics instruction through leadership, professional development, student programs, curriculum development and resource development. In 1988, 20 centers had been established and funded by the Michigan State Legislature, but there were no centers servicing West Michigan. In 1994, funding was provided for a center at Grand Valley. It was then decided to merge the efforts of the Coalition for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Education and the Grand Valley Science and Math Center into the current Regional Math and Science Center.

The center continues to host the annual Science Olympiad Tournament and Science Update Seminar in addition to many new programs, such as Super Science Saturday, G3 Camp for grandparents and grandkids, and PRIME Mathematics.

“As we interface with other science and mathematics education organizations, both in our region and our state, we see the impact of the work that we have done,” said Meyers. “We see teachers who we have worked with in leadership roles in professional organizations, we have Science Olympiad students applying for scholarships, and we have parents tell us we have lit a spark of interest in science that grew into a passion for science, mathematics, statistics and more.”

For more information about the Regional Math and Science Center, visit www.gvsu.edu/rmsc.