Toyota TAPESTRY Program Now Accepting Entries for 21st Annual Science Grant Competition

/PRNewswire/ -- Celebrating its 21st anniversary, the Toyota TAPESTRY Grants for Science Teachers program, the largest science teacher grant program of its kind in the nation, is now accepting entries for the 2011-2012 program year.

Sponsored by Toyota Motor Sales, (TMS) U.S.A., Inc., and administered by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), the program offers $10,000 grants to K-12 teachers for innovative science projects that enhance environmental science education in their school and/or district over a one-year period.

Fifty $10,000 grants totaling $500,000 will be awarded this year. Individual science teachers or a team of up to five teachers can submit proposals in the category of environmental science education. Subcategories from which applicants may choose include: biotic (all living factors) and abiotic (all non-living factors such as pollution, oil, energy, human interventions, water, soil, air, temperature, etc.)

"For 21 years Toyota TAPESTRY Grants for Science Teachers have provided thousands of teachers and students the opportunity to further explore the wonders of science. The focus on environmental science for this year's awards is important and will help both teachers and students to better understand and appreciate critical environmental issues that can and will have an impact on our nation's future," said Francis Eberle, NSTA executive director. "We greatly value our relationship with Toyota and applaud them for their commitment to science education."

The focus on environmental education is a shift from previous years when proposals also were accepted in the areas of physical science and integrating literacy and science. The emphasis closely reflects Toyota's global mission to work in cooperation with society by building relationships with those making environmental preservation a priority, and also aligns with the trend that NSTA has seen in the rising percentage of applications submitted to the environmental science education category.

"The new concentration of this year's Toyota TAPESTRY program allows us to maximize our ability to encourage solutions that lead to greener communities and greener technologies," said Jim Lentz, TMS president and chief operating officer. "Toyota is honored to be celebrating more than two decades of recognizing exceptional teachers who inspire students to form passionate connections with science. We look forward to enhancing environmental education as a result of our continued partnership with NSTA and America's educators."

A judging panel convened by the NSTA will select the award-winning projects based on several criteria, including the teachers' innovative approach to teaching science and their ability to create a stimulating, hands-on learning environment.

Applicants must either be an elementary teacher who teaches science in the classroom or a middle or high school science teacher, with a minimum of three years teaching experience. Applicants must be residents of one of the 50 states or a resident of Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, or the U.S. territories including American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

For more information about the Toyota TAPESTRY Grants for Science Teachers program or to learn how to apply, visit http://www.nsta.org/pd/tapestry/. Applications must be submitted no later than February 23, 2011 to be considered.

Since the program's inception in 1990, Toyota TAPESTRY grants totaling more than $9.2 million have been awarded to science teachers across the country. More than 2,000 teachers have used those funds to develop and execute extraordinary programs that helped hundreds of thousands of students nationwide make real-world connections with science.

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Waycross College and the University of Georgia form partnership

Waycross College students who wish to one day attend the University of Georgia now have a clear academic path to follow. The institutions recently signed two agreements that will ease the transfer of WC students into the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Agriscience and environmental systems degrees

The agreements establish formal options for students who earn an Associate of Science degree from WC to transfer directly into the UGA CAES Agricultural Education or Agriscience and Environmental Systems majors. Both majors are offered on the UGA campus in Tifton, Ga., just 70 miles west of Waycross. A student must complete the associate degree with a grade point average of 2.8 or higher.
Mark Van Den Hende, WC vice president for academic affairs, sees the new transfer agreements as another way for WC to fulfill its mission.

“Partnerships with other University System of Georgia institutions, like the University of Georgia, make attending Waycross College extraordinary,” he said. “Since our goal is to get students ready to transfer to a four-year college, partnerships streamline the process and guarantee that it fulfills our student-centered mission.”

Waycross graduates can stay in south Georgia for UGA degree

WC President David Palmer is pleased that WC graduates now have the opportunity to earn a UGA degree while staying close to home.

“Everyone agrees that the University of Georgia is one of our national flagship academic universities,” Palmer said. “While many of our graduates over the past 34 years have gone on from Waycross College to their junior and senior years in Athens, now we are directly linked to UGA. Students can earn a UGA four-year degree with only two years in Waycross and two years in Tifton – barely 75 miles from home. What an opportunity!”

UGA administrators are equally excited about the new venture.

“This agreement gives students as well as advisors a roadmap to follow,” said Joe West, assistant dean on the UGA Tifton campus. “If they follow that roadmap, take the proper courses and maintain standards, they will find a smooth transition to the University of Georgia Tifton campus. We are excited about this partnership with Waycross College as we reach out to our sister institutions in south Georgia by providing access to the University of Georgia.”

"We wanted to work with local community colleges to create a pathway from their program to ours,” said Joe Broder, CAES associate dean for academic affairs. “We want students to finish their Waycross degree, then come to Tifton. This way they're ready to be successful at UGA, and it’s a win-win for Waycross and UGA.”

Article by Jessica Green of the University of Georgia and Taylor Hereford of Waycross College.

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The Princeton Review Gives 703 Colleges Green Ratings in New 2011 Editions of its Annual College Guides and Website Profiles of Schools

/PRNewswire/ -- The Princeton Review - known for its education services helping students choose and get in to colleges - today reported its third annual Green Ratings of colleges: a measure of how environmentally friendly the institutions are on a scale of 60 to 99. The Company tallied the rating for 703 institutions based on its institutional surveys of colleges in 2009-10 concerning their environmentally related practices, policies and academic offerings.

The Green Rating scores appear in the profiles of the 703 schools that The Princeton Review today posted on www.PrincetonReview.com. They are also in the profiles of those schools in the new 2011 editions of three Princeton Review guidebooks: "The Best 373 Colleges" ($22.99) and "Complete Book of Colleges" ($26.99) - both on sale August 3, and "The Best Northeastern Colleges" ($16.99) - on sale August 10, all published by Random House.

The Princeton Review's "2011 Green Rating Honor Roll"

The Princeton Review also today named 18 colleges to its "2011 Green Rating Honor Roll" - a list of colleges that received the highest possible score (99) in its Green Rating tallies this year. Published in "The Best 373 Colleges" guidebook, the list includes:

(in alphabetical order)
Arizona State University (Tempe)
College of the Atlantic (Bar Harbor ME)
The Evergreen State College (Olympia WA)
Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta)
Harvard College (Cambridge MA)
Northeastern University (Boston MA)
Northland College (Ashland WI)
State University of New York - Binghamton University
Unity College (Unity ME)
University of California - Berkeley
University of California - Santa Barbara
University of California - Santa Cruz
University of Georgia (Athens)
University of Maine (Orono)
University of Maryland - College Park
Warren Wilson College (Asheville NC)
West Virginia University (Morgantown)
Yale University (New Haven CT)



Said Robert Franek, Princeton Review Senior VP / Publisher, "We commend the administrators, faculty and students at the schools on our Green Rating Honor Roll for their exemplary commitments to the environment. Also, we thank the 703 institutions that supplied us with data we requested to tally their Green Rating scores this year. We are pleased to play a role in helping students identify, apply to, and get into these schools."

Franek noted the rising interest among students in attending green colleges. Among 12,000 college applicants and parents of applicants The Princeton Review surveyed this year for its annual "College Hopes & Worries Survey," 64% of respondents said they would value having information about a college's commitment to the environment. Within that cohort, 23% said such information would "very much" impact their decision to apply to or attend a school.

Criteria for Princeton Review's Green Rating cover three areas: 1/ whether the school's students have a campus quality of life that is healthy and sustainable, 2/ how well the school is preparing its students for employment and citizenship in a world defined by environmental challenges, and 3/ the school's overall commitment to environmental issues.

The institutional survey for the rating included questions on energy use, recycling, food, buildings, and transportation as well as academic offerings and action plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Princeton Review developed its Green Rating with ecoAmerica (www.ecoamerica.org), a non-profit environmental organization, in 2007-08.

The Princeton Review dedicated a resource area on its site www.princetonreview.com/green for students interested in attending a green college. There, users can also download "The Princeton Review's Guide to 286 Green Colleges" - the first free, comprehensive guidebook to the nation's most environmentally responsible colleges. The 197-page guide is a project The Princeton Review developed in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council (www.usgbc.org). Published April 20, it has profiles of schools that received scores in the 80th or higher percentile in the Company's 2009 tallies for its Green Ratings. The guide can be downloaded at www.princetonreview.com/greenguide or at www.usgbc.org/campus.

About The Princeton Review College Ratings and College Rankings

The Princeton Review college ratings are scores on a scale of 60 to 99 in up to eight categories that appear on college profiles on its site and college guidebooks. The ratings are based primarily on institutional data. Categories include Academics, Admissions Selectivity, Financial Aid, Fire Safety and Green. The Princeton Review explains the criteria for each rating at www.princetonreview.com/college/college-ratings.aspx

The Princeton Review college rankings are lists of schools in 62 categories (in rank order: 1 to 20) based entirely on the Company's surveys of 122,000 students attending the schools in its book, "The Best 373 Colleges." The survey asks students to rate their own schools on dozens of topics and report on their campus experiences at them. The Princeton Review explains the basis for each ranking list at www,princetonreview.com/college/college-rankings.aspx

On August 18, from 8:30 to 9:30 pm EDT, The Princeton Review will host a free, online event - "Finding Your Best Fit College" - with advice for college applicants from author, Robert Franek. (Information: www.princetonreview.com/bestfitcolleges).

The Princeton Review, headquartered in Framingham, MA with editorial offices in New York City and test preparation locations across the country and abroad, is not affiliated with Princeton University and it is not a magazine.

About The Princeton Review

The Princeton Review (NASDAQ:REVU) has been a pioneer and leader in helping students achieve their higher education goals for more than 28 years through college and graduate school test preparation and tutoring. With more than 165 print and digital publications and a free website, (www.PrincetonReview.com), the Company provides students and their parents with the resources to research, apply to, prepare for, and learn how to pay for higher education. The Princeton Review also partners with schools and guidance counselors throughout the U.S. to assist in college readiness, test preparation and career planning services, helping more students pursue postsecondary education. The Company also owns and operates Penn Foster Education Group, a global leader in online education. Penn Foster provides career-focused degree and vocational programs in the fields of allied health, business, technology, education, and select trades through the Penn Foster High School and Penn Foster Career School (www.pennfoster.edu), which are headquartered in Scranton, PA.

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New Engineering Master’s Degrees Aimed at Emerging Environmental Challenges

Mercer University’s School of Engineering is launching two new degree programs this fall to help meet the nation’s mounting environmental challenges. In August, the School will welcome its first classes for the Master of Science in Engineering in environmental engineering – for students with engineering degrees – and the Master of Science in environmental systems – aimed at practicing professionals with degrees in other science disciplines.

The degrees are timely, according to their designers, because the curricula not only provide training in sustainability, green engineering and ecology, but also address the nation’s most pressing environmental challenges: emerging contaminants and aging environmental infrastructure. The American Society of Civil Engineers, in its most recent report card, gave an overall grade of D for the infrastructure in the United States, and the country’s drinking water, wastewater, energy and hazardous waste systems all received either a D or D minus.

“These new environmental graduate programs will train environmental engineers and scientists to replace the aging infrastructure with sustainable designs and develop innovative approaches to treat emerging contaminants associated with personal care products, endocrine-disrupting compounds and pharmaceutical drugs, as well as conventional pollutants,” said Dr. Richard O. Mines, professor of environmental engineering and director of the School of Engineering’s graduate programs.

Both programs are designed for working professionals, with most courses offered once a week in the evenings. The programs have four major areas of study, where students will study the most advanced techniques and models in biotechnology and remediation, water quality, solid and hazardous waste and air quality issues. A number of the courses include an emphasis on green engineering and sustainable design. The programs also emphasize management, adding skills in leadership and project management while also upgrading each student’s scientific and engineering skills.

The Master of Science in Engineering in environmental engineering is designed for students with an undergraduate degree in any area of engineering. Earning an environmental engineering degree will allow the graduate to be eligible for registration as a professional engineer after passing the fundamentals of engineering examination. In addition, the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying has approved new rules that will eventually require applicants for the professional engineer certification to obtain a master’s degree or equivalent to be eligible for the exam

The Master of Science in environmental systems offers practicing professionals with backgrounds in biology, chemistry and environmental science the opportunity to take advanced courses related to environmental engineering and science, which will extend their knowledge and enable them to effectively work on multidisciplinary teams to solve challenging environmental problems. The degree is available to students with an undergraduate degree in any area of science. Earning the Master of Science in environmental systems also makes the graduate eligible for registration on the National Registry of Environmental Professionals.

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