Hi friends! Excited to be here with you. To be quite honest, I have very little experience with policy, but it's something I am passionate about. As a relatively new teacher leader, I am hoping to get more involved. Would love to hear advice on how I can get involved in policy in STEM and education in general! 

Thanks! 

In order to help guide the teachers in our newly formed STEAM high school, we are developing a listing of the Habits of Mind (HoM) we would like our students to be exposed to during their four years. As part of that effort we are working on developing 4 to 6 HoM per letter. I would appreciate any input. Here is our current draft:

We have a proficiency based graduation policy that requires students to demonstrate proficiency in several areas of focus. We use NGSS, NCAS, CCMS, and ISTE student standards. Local districts write their own graduation proficiencies, We support crafting local policies, by helping to unpack standards.

Understanding or knowing how to begin to be a teacher leader at school was difficult in the begin because there is no manual. A teacher leader is an educator at heart and knows that what schools have to offer is the basics and is not a full thinking deal. Many teachers around you don't think the way a teacher leader does, so asking non-intrinsic leaders is frustrating and finding intrinsic leaders is hard. So jumping feet first seemed the best way to start. I began first by writing grants. Grants are a teacher leader's vision. Did anyone think enough of my vision to fund the idea. Well, I wanted to find out. Once, I received my first grant I saw a beginning. Next, I thought, how do I become more knowledgeable about the content I am addressing in an innovative way. Hum...let me ask a professional. So I reached out to community professionals and met with them and picked their brains and invited them into my classroom. Next, I discussed areas of the state and national curriculum with them and asked if they would partner with me. I had them come to teacher meetings to share their expertise and give a presentation. Writing grants was so successful and gave me the opportunity to meet with professionals, so I wrote even more. Over the years, I have formed numerous relationships with varying professionals in my community. Every professional that I have dealt with have writing, math, science and technology components utilized in their profession. When they revealed those to me, I could, in most meetings, find connections to my specific standards for my students or at least what would lead up to or come after the standard. I could then modify for my students, sometimes with the help of my students or the professional. Professionals are a great sounding board for finding the keys to unlocking creative student involvement in our societies problems. I began working with professionals without writing grants. I found real world problems that affect students and their families and that students are passionate about are the motivation to learning.  My students have created a web page to share their research and brochures. They have presented to city council. They have competed. They do volunteer work. Teacher leaders learn from people and organizations in the world to reflect on the teaching profession, to get their students involved, and encourage non-intrinsic teacher thinkers to think about more than curriculum from a book. The four walls and a door can either hold you in or set you free. The choice is made when, and only when, you believe you are an agent of change.

I had the opportunity to work on the committee to write the new AZ state science standards and will also be evaluating the performance assessment items. The working groups were comprised of different educators over the period of two years and changed often (on purpose) to get a wide variety of input.

I also enjoyed being a 100Kin10 for three years gathering teacher input on the challenges of STEM education.

I have been involved with technology integration policy since computers were accepted as part of education.

Following policy first in Colorado, then New Hampshire with a ten year side trip to Syracuse, New York and back to New Hampshire to build a project from the grassroots has been a solid, ongoing policy adventure.

In 2017-18, I was privileged to serve as an Einstein Fellow at NASA.  Outside of the office, Fellows participate in many ed leadership opportunities in Washington DC and beyond.  I grew so much in my understanding of ed policy, STEM programming and public STEM policy.  i also met many movers and shakers in this sphere which brought a new dimension to the fellowship.

I participate in a Maine Department of Education working group focussed on computer science education.  We are currently focussed on computer science standards and ensuring all schools have adequate resources and professional support.