Planning & Hosting a Regional Conference

Laura Henriques - CSU Long BeachDavid Andrews – CSU FresnoJaime Arvizu – CSU Fresno

Sponsored by the NSF DUE # 0957862

Quick Overview

• Western Region started having regional conferences in 2008 with some supplemental funding from NSF

• A group of 3 campuses submitted a proposal to be able to run WRNC for three years (2010-2012)

• Each campus in the western region is able to attend. The grant pays for one project staff and 4 scholars/alums

• No cost to campuses to attend

2010 Conference

• Highly successful conference in Fresno (April 2010)– Many breakout sessions led by Noyce Scholars &

Alums– Sessions addressed technology, classroom

management, content, leadership• Changes we wanted to make….– Don’t repeat sessions (have more choices)– Vertical alignment of strands instead of horizontal– Hotel set-up issues

Conference Overview

• March 25-27, 2011• Westin Hotel in Costa Mesa, CA (free airport

shuttle)• Approximately 250 attendees from more than

50 institutions in the Western region

Objectives

• Participants will be exposed to a variety of training opportunities specific to those who teach, or are preparing to teach, science and mathematics

• Professional development will be directed at teaching educators to access instructional resources available through on-line digital libraries

• Participants will have the opportunity to form networks with others who teach in the same discipline and face many of the same challenges to teaching science and math in high-needs settings

• Relationships formed will be maintained beyond the conference by way of resources such as Merlot Voices

Highlights

• Welcoming Remarks– Joan Prival, NSF Noyce Program Director– Joan Bissell, CSU Teacher Education and Public

Schools Program Director– Laura Kingsford, CSULB College of Natural Sciences

and Mathematics Dean• Keynote Speakers– Kendall Zoller, President of Sierra Training Associates– Sharaud D. Moore, Freedom Writer

Friday, March 25• Pre-conference workshops– Standards-Aligned Online Resources for Secondary Math

and Science Teaching and Electronic Portfolio Tools– NSTA learning Center Workshop for Participants of the

NSDL/Noyce Summer 2010 Solar Neighborhood Workshop– An Informal Conversation for Faculty and Staff with Google

Inc. Education Team Members

• Poster Reception – Included lots of food– Had a task for folks to do

Saturday, March 26• Welcoming Remarks• Concurrent Sessions• Keynote- Kendall Zoller

The Choreography of Teaching: 7 Essential Abilities of Effective Teaching

• Voices from the Field• Lightning Session

Sunday, March 27

• Concurrent Sessions• Keynote- Sharaud Moore• Closing Session• Evaluations

Concurrent Sessions

• Selection of 42 workshops – Classroom Management– Technology– Model Lessons/Activities– ELL/Differentiating Instruction– Leadership/Professional Growth– PI/Project Staff

• Workshop descriptions and materials available online at www.wrnc2011.org

Project Timeline• September

– Hired conference coordinator • October

– Visited venues/hotels– Sent out Save the Date emails

• November– Conference call with WRNC steering committee– Planning Survey to PIs

• December– Contacted Math and Science teacher organizations for

donations (free conf. registrations, journals, membership info, etc.)

– Order conference bags• January

– Contacted and contracted keynote speakers– Sent out the Call for Proposals

Timeline• February– Registration– Deadline for proposals – Review & select proposal– Finalize program

• March– Confirmed number of rooms needed– Pre-conference visit to discuss schedule, layout, and details– Posted e-materials on website– Stuff folders & bags– WRNC!

• April (and May)– Processed travel claims– Evaluation data processed

• Summary data sent to each presenter– Wrote final report

Conference Odds & Ends

• Need volunteers or workers to staff registration tables (throughout entire conference)

• Schedule at a glance was popular (back of nametag)

• Students liked raffles• Helpful to have multiple

eating options within safe, walking distance– Include listing in program

folder

• Signage with session names outside rooms– Include hotel room map

Evaluation• Two forms of evaluation– External evaluator: different surveys for Scholars &

project staff with Likert items related to conference objectives and open ended questions about sessions and conference elements that were helpful and less helpful.

– Our own evaluation: Participants were asked to evaluate each general session, keynote speaker, and break-out session they attended, as well as provide feedback as to what they found most valuable and would have liked that was not included.

Please indicate the number that most closely matches your response to the statement.5 = “strongly agree”4 = “agree”3 = “neither agree nor disagree”2 = “disagree”1 = “strongly disagree”

I am more connected to others who will teach in high needs schools. I intend to maintain contact with some of those I met at the conference. Merlot Voices will help me communicated with others in my subject.I feel better prepared for the secondary school classroom. I feel more optimistic about my ability to succeed in high needs schools.I am optimistic about new technologies I can use to teach with.I am more acquainted with on-line resources in my subject.I feel better able to adapt instruction to students with different needs.I feel more able to maintain an effective learning environment.I will use on-line resources introduced at the conference in my teaching.I have learned new techniques for managing problem behavior.The keynote speakers increased my enthusiasm for teaching. The session I found most helpful was, The session I found least helpful was,

Elements of the conference that were of the most value to me include, Elements of the program that weren’t helpful include,

Please note which session you attended and then mark the session’s overall usefulness.

Very useful

Useful

Neutral

Not Usefu

l

Waste of Time

Comments about the session

Session 2 (Saturday 10:15-11:15) Survive and Thrive: Setting the Stage

the First Week of School Scientific Inquiry and Engineering

Design: Engaging Students in Authentic STEM Learning

Studio Math Classroom: A Model for Developing Leadership, Mentoring and Fostering Professional Learning

Lesson Study for Secondary Teaching Preparing STEM Teachers in Highly

Engaging State-of-the-Art Digital Applications for the Classroom

Learning By Doing: Virtual Courseware for Science Education

Evaluation Results• Overall, the external evaluation reveals that the 2011

Western Regional Noyce Conference was a great success.– Noyce Scholars and PIs expressed the keynote speakers,

networking, and workshop variety as the most valuable elements of the conference.

– PIs would have liked more sessions and networking opportunities geared for PIs/Project Staff.

– Noyce Scholars would have liked more subject-specific session, especially for math, and more sessions that provided hands-on activities and lesson plans.

– Scholars did not find the Voices from the Field to be valuable. Would have rather had alums share specific strategies and tips or had another workshop or time for networking

Acknowledgements• WRNC Leadership Team

Jodye Selco and Davida Fischman– CSU Fresno Dave Andrews & Jaime Arvizu– Arizona State University Ingrid Novordosky– CSULB Angela Tuan & our current Noyce Scholars

• Thanks to NSF

Folder Items

• Agenda• Descriptions of sessions• Attendee list• State math and science teacher organizations

and upcoming conference dates• Evaluation materials

External Evaluation Executive Summary

The 2011 Western Noyce Conference was held at Long Beach, California, Friday through Sunday, from the 25th to the 27th of March. The conference included Noyce Scholars and administrators who represented university campuses from six western states including Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Colorado, and Idaho. Dr. Laura Henriques, for whom California State University, Long Beach is a home campus, provided much of the organization for the conference with assistance from other Noyce Principal Investigators from throughout the CSU system.

There was a variety of talks and demonstration sessions designed to help Noyce scholars develop networks with others who teach science and math in high-needs schools, promote access to on-line resources for classroom teachers, and present solutions to the problems common to teaching and managing underperforming math and science students. All conference participants were invited to respond to surveys based on conference objectives. Many also provided feedback regarding the individual concurrent sessions. Results indicate that those who attended believe the conference objectives to have been addressed and by any reasonable measure, felt that the conference was a great success.