The Conference on Transforming Institutions: 21st Century Undergraduate STEM Education has taken place in October, 2011, and will take place again October, 2014. This conference brings together change leaders from academia, government, and industry to explore research-based practices, strategies and challenges for institutional transformation, especially as related to STEM education.
Attendees are actively involved in discussing the institutionalization of research-based educational practices and transformative efforts in higher education within four theme areas:
- Institutional supports and barriers for transformation
- Understanding transformation through assessment
- Faculty development for educational innovation
- Learning spaces/technology/infrastructure
The 2011 conference featured a number of outstanding speakers including Carl Wieman, former Associate Director for Science, Office of Science and Technology Policy, The White House and winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physics; Joan Ferrini-Mundy, Assistant Director, National Science Foundation, Directorate for Education and Human Resources; Martin Storksdieck, Director, Board on Science Education, The National Academies/The National Research Council to name a few.
The 2014 conference will feature Dr. Freeman Hrabowski III, President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Linda Slakey; Consultant for the AAU STEM Initiative and Mr. Howard Gobstein, Co-director of the Science and Mathematics Teacher Imperative (SMTI) and the Executive Vice President for Research, Innovation and STEM Education at the APLU and Adrianna Kezar, Professor of Higher Education, University of Southern California. Following the 2014 conference, an edited book will be published with chapters contributed by conference speakers. The conference is hosted by the Discovery Learning Research Center and the 2014 conference will take place at the NCAA Hall of Champions in Indianapolis, IN.