MEDIA ADVISORY

May 16, 2008

Educators Gather at NMSI-UTeach Institute Conference

To Discuss Boosting Number of Science Teachers

AUSTIN, Texas – An outpouring of national interest will result in largest conference of educators interested in replicating the successful UTeach program for training math and science teachers May 20-24, 2008. The three-day NMSI-UTeach Institute Conference will kick off at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Thompson Conference Center on the University of Texas Campus.

Response to the conference has exceeded expectations and more than more 230 participants from around the country will attend the three-day meeting, the largest national workshop since the program’s inception 11 years ago.

Attendees will learn more about the highly successful UTeach program and explore issues related to science and math education with university faculty, administrators, and others currently implementing UTeach programs across the country. UTeach is being replicated at 13 universities throughout the United States through the Uteach Institute and the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI).

UTeach provides teacher preparation for undergraduate majors earning degrees in science, math and computer science without adding time or cost to their degrees. The result is that greater numbers of graduates with degrees in those crucial fields are going into teaching careers.

The mission of NMSI is to advance math and science education in the U.S. by expanding programs with proven results on a national scale in order to have a positive impact on America’s 50 million student public school system. Two programs with established records of success have been selected to receive funding from NMSI for national expansion: the UTeach program and the Advanced Placement Training and Incentive program, which greatly increases the number of students taking rigorous coursework in math and science. Major funding for NMSI has come from Exxon Mobil Corporation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Michael and Susan Dell Foundation.

The Austin conference attendees will include representatives from current recipients of NMSI-UTeach grants, including: Florida State University, Louisiana State University/Southeastern Louisiana University, Northern Arizona University, Temple University, University of Kansas, University of California- Berkeley, University of Colorado- Boulder, University of California- Irvine, University of Florida, University of Houston, University of North Texas, UT Dallas, and Western Kentucky University.

Also attending are representatives of nearly two dozen universities that have expressed an interest in the UTeach program.

Contacts: Lee Clippard, UT, (512)-232-0675, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Rena Pederson, NMSI, (214) 665-2523, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

For more information, please visit:

www.nationalmathandscience.org

www.uteach-institute.org and www.uteach.utexas.edu.