Registration deadline extended for teachers for Duke Energy Academy at Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The registration deadline has been extended for secondary schoolteachers interested in participating in the expanded Duke Energy Academy at Purdue, slated for June 22-28 on the Purdue University campus.

The new deadline is March 16. Interested teachers must fill out an application form. Participation is free of charge for the 42 students and 42 teachers selected. Teachers also will receive a $400 stipend. To apply online, go to http://www.purdue.edu/energyacademy

The summer program, led by the Purdue Energy Center in Discovery Park, will accommodate up to 84 participants who will immerse themselves in hands-on activities, tours and field trips exploring energy-related issues and careers. Thirty-three students and 29 teachers participated in the 2013 event.

"We are excited that Duke Energy is helping us expand the program to reach more students across Indiana and rebrand this exciting summer experience as the Energy Academy at Purdue," said Purdue Energy Center director Maureen McCann, a professor of biological sciences. "Our participating teachers will learn cutting-edge research, develop instruction lessons for their classrooms and receive 48 hours of professional continuing education growth points."

Focusing on the STEM disciplines - science, technology, engineering and mathematics -Duke Energy Academy at Purdue will include hands-on activities, tours and exposure to state-of-the-art laboratories, entrepreneurship opportunities and careers in energy.

Participating teachers will receive resources on energy and STEM education that they can incorporate into their school curriculums.

"We aim to inspire teachers to communicate the importance of this relatively new and highly interdisciplinary area of scholarship in their classrooms and to inspire students to consider one of the many fields related to energy sciences and engineering in their educational and career goals," said Pankaj Sharma, managing director of the Purdue Energy Center.

An initial survey of past participants showed that 92 percent of teachers indicated that they gained knowledge that they would implement in their classrooms, while 93 percent of students said they would enter a STEM-related field in college.

To request sponsorship information or more details about the academy, contact Jill Wable of the Purdue Energy Center, 765-494-1610, jwable@purdue.edu

During the event, students and teachers are assigned to teams for daily activities using STEM principles to formulate energy-related projects and hands-on research activities. They will tour a nearby wind farm, a coal plant, nuclear reactor, and other research facilities and laboratories on campus. They also will engage in a policy discussion on energy issues.

The academy is organized by the Energy Center, a center in Purdue's Discovery Park focused on advancing energy sciences and engineering for sustainable energy solutions. The Energy Center is part of the university's Global Sustainability Institute, which was launched in Discovery Park to coordinate Purdue's research efforts in sustainability challenges such as climate change, energy, food security, the environment and water. 

Media Contacts: Phillip Fiorini, 765-496-3133, pfiorini@purdue.edu 

Angeline Protogere, 317-838-1338, angeline.protogere@duke-energy.com 

Sources: Maureen McCann, 765-494-1610, mmccann@purdue.edu