Boston College Education Prof. Michael Barnett Named 2012
Massachusetts Professor Of The Year
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass.,
Nov. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/
-- Boston College Lynch School of Education Associate
Professor of Science Education and Technology G. Michael Barnett
has been named the 2012 Massachusetts Professor of the Year by the
Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council
for Advancement and Support of Education in recognition of his
teaching excellence and positive influence on the lives and careers
of students. It is the only national program that recognizes
excellence in undergraduate teaching and mentoring.
Barnett's focus is on urban science education, specifically
exciting undergraduates and the youngsters they student teach about
STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields through
projects that utilize technology and link to real-world issues.
Barnett uses innovative tools such as indoor hydroponic vertical
farms where BC undergraduates work with their K-12 students to grow
vegetables and then sell the produce at their own farmer's markets.
Through the project, which takes the participants from seed to
market, his students learn about topics such as environmental
science, engineering, botany, nutrition, sustainability and
economics. Barnett has set up vertical farms in Boston Latin
School, Russell Elementary in
Dorchester, New Mission High
School in Hyde Park, St.
Columbkille School in Brighton,
and on campus at BC's greenhouse.
Earlier this fall he received a $250,000 National Science Foundation grant to
launch Boston's largest indoor
hydroponic gardening youth initiative. In partnership with the
Salvation Army's Kroc Center in Dorchester and the non-profit STEM Garden
Institute, the after-school project will serve hundreds of middle
and high school students in Dorchester and Roxbury.
"I try to get everybody excited about science, from K-12
students to college students to the general public," said Barnett,
who joined the Lynch School in 2002.
A self-described "recovering astrophysicist" from Kentucky, Barnett caught the teaching bug when
he was tapped to teach a lesson about the moon to "immensely
inquisitive fifth-graders" while he was working on his PhD in
astrophysics.
"[Professor Barnett] loves educating people on how to teach
science. A self-proclaimed technical geek, he consistently
encourages his students to find ways to put new technologies in the
hands of their students, including some that I have incorporated in
my high school classroom," said former student Andrew Trossello who now teaches chemistry and
biology at a Boston high
school.
Carnegie Foundation
The Carnegie Foundation for the
Advancement of Teaching is an independent policy and research
center that supports needed transformations in American education
through tighter connections between teaching practice, evidence of
student learning, the communication and use of this evidence, and
structured opportunities to build knowledge.
CASE
Headquartered in Washington, D.C.,
with offices in London,
Singapore and Mexico City, CASE is a professional
association serving educational institutions and the advancement
professionals at all levels who work in alumni relations,
communications, fundraising, marketing and other areas.
SOURCE Boston College