Cleveland—On September 1, 2010 The Birchwood School and science teacher, Linda Brown, were the sole Cleveland recipients of the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Youth Science Opportunities. The Ohio Academy of Science selected 115 Ohio schools and 418 teachers to receive Governor’s Awards for Excellence in Youth Science Opportunities for their accomplishments during the 2009-2010 school year.
To qualify for the Governor’s Award, each school conducted a local science fair with 20 or more students, sent one or more of these students to one of the Academy’s 16 district science days, and involved students in one or more youth science opportunities beyond the classroom such as State Science Day, visits to museums, mentorship programs an extended field trip.
In February of this year, Brown conducted a local science fair involving 30 students. Two of these students, Dhweeja D and Vinayak K, received superior ratings at the district level and advanced to the Ohio State Science Day where they also turned out superior ratings.
In addition to these achievements, Brown and her students participated in Science Olympiads, National Chemistry Week Experiments, Young Astronaut Day, as well as taking part in a four day program at the Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Center.
“Receiving a Governor’s Award for Excellence sends a clear signal that these schools and teachers value student-originated, inquiry-based science education as outlined in the Ohio Science Education Standards and in the National Science Education Standards,” said Lyn Elfner, the Academy’s CEO. “Whole new worlds of opportunities open up to students when they complete research or technological design projects.” he continued.
