Workshop with local high school teachers a huge success!

​Dr. Michael Walter and Ms. Jessie Enlow (Cox Mill High School teacher) led a polymer semiconductor workshop for 13 local high school science teachers in the Burson building on Monday, October 26. The goal of the workshop was to integrate nanoscale material science experiments into prescribed high school curricula. The program – funded by the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation – was designed around a new polymer semiconductor kit that allows teachers to teach required fundamental science concepts, while at the same time introducing students to the new fields of conjugated polymers and material science. Nanoscale Science Ph.D. student Dawn Marin assisted with the workshops, which involved training the teachers about three modules: a polymer solar cell, an organic light emitting diode, and a conductive polymer nano fiber experiment. Teachers who completed the workshop received a kit and curriculum with enough materials to run the activities many times with their students. The program will continue to develop with online resources for involved teachers. A new cohort of teachers will participate in a similar workshop in Spring 2016.