The 2015 cohort of STaR Fellows was named just before the Annual Meeting and includes 32 faculty members from 30 different institutions in 21 states. This brings the total number of STaR Fellows to 207! The group will convene in Park City, Utah for 5 days in June for collaboration and mentoring on the topics of service, teaching, and research. AMTE President, Christine Thomas, will join the group along with staff members Sandra Crespo, Karen Hollebrands, Jeff Shih, and co-directors Jeff Wanko and Denise Spangler.
The 2014 cohort participated in a 4-hour workshop prior to the start of AMTE in Orlando. Fellows had an opportunity to reconnect with their small groups from the summer to give updates and plan future work related to teaching and research. The group also heard from a panel consisting of Christa Jackson, Sean Yee, Farshid Safi, and Mandy Jansen. In addition, the group learned about the NCTM Research Committee’s work on Grand Challenges in our field and heard from NCTM President Diane Briars. Following the workshop, STaR Fellows (2010-2015 cohorts) enjoyed catching up at a reception.
A panel of STaR Fellows including Clark Dollard, Christa Jackson, Kevin Moore, and Erin Krupa, along with Bob Reys, Jeff Wanko, and Denise Spangler presented a session on the STaR program at the AMTE Annual Meeting. The session was well attended, and the audience consisted mainly of doctoral students and early career faculty members desiring to be STaR Fellows one day. It was encouraging to hear one doctoral student note that she was currently negotiating a job offer and was including participation in the STaR program as part of her start-up package! Take note doctoral students and advisors!
The STaR Committee, which is charged with raising funds to sustain the STaR program, met during the Annual Meeting. To date, AMTE has received $67,000 in donations, including donations from the Brookhill Institute, NCTM, the American Statistical Association, several AMTE state affiliates, and over 125 individual AMTE members. Significantly, over half of all STaR Fellows have made a financial contribution to the Program, and seven AMTE members have made donations large enough to sponsor a STaR Fellow ($1500). These donations will ensure the program continues into 2016. If you are interested in making a contribution to the program, visit the AMTE website. To make a donation of securities, please contact Tim Hendrix.