SESSION TYPE: Featured Speaker (Panel) SESSION TITLE: Education Initiatives in NY’s Tech Valley: Nanotechnology STRAND: STEM DAY: Friday TIME: 8:30 - 9:45 am LOCATION: Sutton Parlor Central, 2nd floor

Discover the possibilities for educators in the world of nanotechnology. A panel will detail NYSUT’s initiatives for teachers that incorporate nanotechnology and other emerging technology-related fields into the curriculum. Discuss the skills that students will need to enter this dynamic field and how teachers and industry are partnering to connect teaching practice to these skills. Find out how these partnerships were developed and how you might be able to bring similar initiatives to your school or district.

BIOGRAPHY

Elizabeth Herkenham is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Workforce Consortium for Emerging Technologies. The Workforce Consortium is not-for-profit, intermediary organization that builds partnerships among businesses, government agencies and education to address the workforce needs of the emerging technologies within the Tech Valley Region and beyond.

Mark Kaercher is a math teacher at Shaker High School in Latham, NY. Mark has been a participant and presenter for the SEMI High Tech U Program, a NYSUT initiative to integrate nanotechnology into the curriculum. Mark is a 2001 Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award recipient. Mark lives in Latham, NY with his wife and his two children.

Terry McSweeney is an Assistant in Research and Educational Services at NYSUT. Terry has 16 years classroom experience as a math and science teacher and served as President of the Marcellus Faculty Association and Vice President of the Onondaga County Teachers Association. Terry was a member of the New York State Math A Panel and was appointed by the Board of Regents as Co-Chair of the New York State Standards Mathematics Committee in 2004. Terry lives in Loudonville and has three grown children and two grandchildren.