Trinity School Students Present at STEM Conference

Trinity School at River Ridge presents at the University of Minnesota Colloquium on STEM Education Research

Educating the next generation in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is necessary for both the security and economic prosperity of our country. Whether it’s skills in mathematics and technology for sifting the intelligence gathered to combat terrorists, or talent for science and engineering to lead the United States in robotics and computers, the country must determine how to make STEM fields appealing to young people to produce the next generation of STEM professionals.

The University of Minnesota established the STEM Education Center with several goals, chiefly comprehending how children understand and develop interest in complex concepts, training and evaluating teachers to make them more effective.

On Monday, July 9 and Tuesday, July 10, the STEM Education Center hosted a nation-wide conference on education research for pre-kindergarten to 12th grade levels at the McNamara Alumni Center on the Twin Cities campus. Trinity School at River Ridge faculty member, Dr. David S. O'Hanley, and four students from the class of 2013: Molly Andersen (Mendota Heights), Henry Croll (Eagan), Madeline Johnson (Minneapolis) and Michael Moss (Shoreview), were invited to give a presentation entitled “Wholistic Integration of Physics: From Mathematical Models through MATLAB Programming to Experimental Verification”. The students taught attendees how to gather data, write a MATLAB program to model the data, and compare the two…all within an hour.

The perspectives of the students are also worthy of note, both for the appreciation they gained for their Trinity School STEM education, and the state of STEM within education in general. One student remarked, “I was surprised how informal the presentations turned out to be. I cannot speak for all four of us, but I felt like I was involved in a two-sided discussion that ended up ranging far from the land of MATLAB.” Another noted, “What I got from talking to (a conference participant) was that I'm glad I go to Trinity.” And finally, “Exposure to the broader educational conversation was eye-opening and informative, and I think opportunities like this for more widespread give and take between Trinity and the outside world would be a definite plus.”

Dr. O’Hanley left the conference enthusiastic about the prospects of a conversation between Trinity School at River Ridge and the greater STEM community.

Trinity School at River Ridge provides a classical education for students in grades seven through twelve. All students participate in a rigorous science and math curriculum, including not only the use, but also programming in MATLAB. Trinity School is located in Eagan, MN. For further information, please contact Peggy Louiselle, Sr. Director of Advancement at plouiselle@trinityschools.org or visit www.TSRR.org.