Programs for Schools & Districts
We can custom design staff development for your school or district. Depending on your needs, we can incorporate professional development institutes, co-teaching support, leadership training, peer coaching, partnerships with scientists, and professional learning communities into your program, and make graduate credit available. We can provide programming at the museum or at your school, for small groups or for your entire staff. Please call (651) 221-4592 or email for more information.
Nexus: A Leadership Program for District STEM Coordinators
The Science Museum of Minnesota is thrilled to announce Nexus 2008-09, an initiative for district leaders, curriculum coordinators, university faculty, professional developers, and others with responsibility for STEM education. Through a generous grant from the Medtronic Foundation, Nexus was formed in 2006 to support people with district-level STEM responsibilities. Last year, Nexus included 44 participants from 17 districts. This year, Nexus will be expanding to include more participants and teams from Greater Minnesota.
2008-09 goals for Nexus are to:
- Improve understanding of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines and their integration, with an emphasis on engineering.
- Build new ideas and approaches to increasing access and equity for all students and closing the achievement gap.
- Examine the intersections between different theories of learning with an emphasis for veteran participants on developing new understandings of adult pedagogy.
- Expand and strengthen Nexus to a Minnesota statewide network of STEM education leaders.
The application process for Nexus is competitive. Each district (or consortium of small districts) applying needs to select a team of two to five individuals with collective responsibility for STEM efforts within their district(s).
Download Application Materials Here.
Application Deadline: 5:00 PM, Monday, October 13, 2008
Notification: Applicants will be notified of their status by email on, or before, October 20, 2008
If you have any questions please contact Marjorie Bullitt Bequette at or (651) 221-4778.
Nexus is supported by the Medtronic Foundation, the 3M Foundation, and the State of Minnesota.
MUSE in Minnesota: Opportunities for Schools & Districts
MUSE in Minnesota is a State funded K-12 professional development initiative to engage schools and districts in sustained systems change efforts in STEM teaching and learning. MUSE provides access to museum professional development, outreach programs, and Science House materials to schools and districts throughout Greater Minnesota. If you are a school principal, school or district level curriculum coordinator, or superintendent and would like to partner with the museum in engaging teachers in professional development around 8th grade algebra readiness and science and math integration; cultural competence, diverse student populations, and the achievement gap; or formative assessment and student learning, please contact Erin Strauss at or (651) 221-2574.
Learn more about MUSE in Minnesota.
Visit our Professional Development Philosophy & Mission page to learn more about our approaches.