Message from the Director
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Dear MTSU Faculty, Staff, and Administrators,
I’m delighted to share some recent highlights and developments from the TN STEM Education Center (TSEC). After several years of rapid growth, our team has begun to solidify and establish its identity as a premier research and outreach leader at the local and state level. One of my primary goals when I arrived in 2018 was to better align our mission and activities with those of our colleagues, departments and colleges across campus and to increase the capacity and visibility of TSEC to our stakeholder communities. It is now common for prospective partners to reach out to us to add value to their emerging or ongoing ventures in STEM education. I’m excited that our newest additions,
Dr. Kevin Ragland (Associate Director) and Ms. Casey Penston (Coordinator) provide us additional connections and access into rural education opportunities, corporate sponsorships, and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs. Ms. Sarah Gwinn (Grant Writer) brings energy, proven success, and potential collaborations with MTSU’s Center for Health and Human Services. The future looks bright to us and we invite you to join the conversation about providing thought leadership to these spaces as we anticipate increasingly significant impacts across K-20 STEM education together with you, our supporters, collaborators, and friends.
Gregory T. Rushton, Ph.D.
TSEC Director
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New Associate Director, Kevin Ragland,
Joins TSEC
Kevin Ragland recently joined TSEC as Associate Director in the Tennessee STEM Education Center and Associate Research Professor in the School of Agriculture.
Dr. Ragland joined MTSU from industry where he had spent the last six years as a Principal Scientist in pet nutrition. He has also previously spent over ten years in higher education teaching animal science and biology courses.
Dr. Ragland earned his B.S. in Animal Science from The University of Tennessee and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Breeding and Genetics from Iowa State University. His outreach and research interests include informal STEM education as well as STEM education in rural schools and 2-year colleges. We are excited to have him join the faculty at TSEC!
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Introducing Casey Penston, New TSEC Coordinator
Casey Penston joined the Tennessee STEM Education Center as the new coordinator. Previously, Casey served as program assistant to MTSU’s Office of Research and Sponsored Programs. She has over a decade of experience in the fields of administration, education, and environmental compliance and permitting. Casey holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and is a former STEM educator.
Casey brings to TSEC a passion for STEM education initiatives and a commitment to serving and supporting our campus community. She is a small-town Tennessee native, and her family has made Lascassas their home since 2012. She is happiest when gardening and spending time with her family…and chickens.
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Best Wishes to TSEC’s Sherry Schafer
If you have called or visited the Tennessee STEM Education Center over the last five years, you have likely interacted with Sherry Schafer. Sherry has helped manage the office and activities at TSEC since 2017, serving as the Executive Aide.
For years Sherry has served TSEC, and although still supporting our staff, she has decided to reallocate her time, focusing on family and self. Sherry always finds ways to brighten the office and build morale among the team. Her hard work and years of full-time dedication to TSEC are appreciated, but now we celebrate new horizons!
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Mosley to Serve as Chair Elect
for ACTE
In January, the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) announced the results of the election for several spots on its Board of Directors. The election was open to ACTE’s membership of roughly 25,000 educators, administrators, and other CTE professionals. Chaney Mosley, PhD, an Assistant Professor of agricultural education at Middle Tennessee State University in the School of Agriculture was elected to the position of president-elect. His one-year term will begin in July 2022 and will be followed by one-year terms as president and past president, respectively. Prior to being elected to president-elect, Chaney served as ACTE Region II vice president for three years.
At MTSU, Chaney teaches coursework aimed at preparing students majoring in agriculture to earn a Tennessee teaching license so they can teach middle or high school agriculture, conducts research related to agricultural education, and serves as an Assistant Director in the Tennessee STEM Education Center (TSEC).
The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, school counselors, guidance and career development professionals, and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development, and leadership opportunities.
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TSEC Post-Doc Gets His Dream Job at R1 University
Dr. Josh Reid, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, in Dr. Greg Rushton’s research group at MTSU was recently hired to a tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor of Biology at Texas Tech University.
When asked what excites him about the role, Dr. Reid said, “I got my dream job. It was exactly what I wanted to do since I knew I wanted to go to graduate school.”
Dr. Reid was attracted to the MTSU Mathematics and Science Education program for his Ph.D. and is quick to give credit to his time at MTSU as a key reason he feels prepared to engage in teaching and research at an R1 university. He said, “I feel prepared and confident due to my time in TSEC. I was given several opportunities to lead projects. I appreciate the amount of interdisciplinary relationships I had at MTSU and how easy it is to engage people from different fields. I have been really fortunate to work with some amazing scholars.”
Dr. Reid, a native of Cullman, Alabama, received his B.S. in Biology from Athens State University, M.S. in Biology from Alabama A&M University, and his Ph.D. from Middle Tennessee State University in Mathematics and Science Education with a Biology Education Concentration.
His research interests include understanding (1) the professional learning experiences of biology graduate students, (2) the diffusion of evidence-based teaching practices in academic departments, and (3) using network analytic techniques to understand individual and collaborative learning in undergraduate classrooms.
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Reeder Places Third at Scholars Week
Andrea Reeder, a doctoral student in the Mathematics and Science Education Program, recently placed third in the doctoral division of the College and Basic and Applied Sciences research poster competition at MTSU's Scholars Week.
Andrea's research focused on STEM Teacher Leadership and examined 15 mid-career science teachers who participated in an NSF supported professional learning program (PLP) to discover the teachers’ perceptions of how the experiences supported their development as teacher leaders in the PLP and their schools. Teacher leaders are effective practitioners, policy experts, peer mentors, and research scholars who lead from their classrooms and impact their schools by improving instructional practices, curating culture, and challenging traditions. The training of science teacher leaders matters because it influences their practices and knowledge as they teach the generation of STEM students. This study adds to the literature on the significance of enacting leadership skills, elevating pedagogical and content knowledge, and involving role models to assist teachers in developing as teacher leaders.
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Southeastern STEM Educational Research Conference
The 16th annual Southeastern STEM Education Research Conference was hosted at Middle Tennessee State University on January 13-14, 2022.
The conference aimed to share current research questions, methodologies, and findings within disciplinary and interdisciplinary STEM contexts, facilitate discussion between researchers and educators, improve teaching methods for STEM topics, and promote STEM education collaborations and partnerships.
Educators came from colleges in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, and Virginia. The keynote speaker for the event was Dr. Marilyn Strutchens, the Emily R. and Gerald S. Leischuck Endowed, Professor, and Mildred Cheshire Fraley, Distinguished Professor of Mathematics Education. Dr. Strutchens, the current chair of the Advisory Committee for the Directorate for Education and Human Resources for the National Science Foundation, focused her address on the impacts of conducting equity-based research.
The 17th conference will shift from MTSU to Tennessee Tech’s campus in Cookeville, Tennessee, for the January 12-13, 2023, event.
The conference was sponsored by the Tennessee STEM Education Center, the College of Basic and Applied Sciences, the MTSU Mathematics and Science Education program, Office of Research Services, Tennessee Tech Oakley STEM Center, and ETSU Center of Excellence in STEM Education.
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Posters at the Capitol
Thirty-seven undergraduate students, including seven students from Middle Tennessee State University, showcased their STEM-related research at the annual Posters at the Capitol at the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville on February 16.
The Posters at the Capitol project, sponsored by the Tennessee Board of Regents and the University of Tennessee system, and hosted by Middle Tennessee State University, has two goals – to expose legislators to undergraduate researchers and expose undergraduates to their legislators.
Other participating universities included Austin Peay, East Tennessee State, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech, the University of Memphis, the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and the University of Tennessee at Martin.
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(L-R) Logan Carver, DaVonte Lewis, Quinn Wilson, Carina Vazquez, Maria Clark, Sophia Taylor, Hunter Brady
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For 14 years, undergraduates have been amazing Senators and Congress men and women with their outstanding research results in a wide variety of academic disciplines. These students were selected to represent the best undergraduate research in STEM disciplines at MTSU.
Hunter Brady, a biology major from Murfreesboro, studied the antiviral activity of chlorine dioxide gas. His mentor is professor of biology Anthony Newsome.
Logan Carver, a psychology major from Nashville, explored the therapeutic potential of gene regulation of neuroblastoma. His faculty mentor is assistant professor of biology April Weissmiller.
Maria Clark, a biochemistry major from Murfreesboro whose research involved the potential use of select peptoids as inhibitors of pathogenic yeast. Her mentor is associate professor of chemistry Kevin Bicker.
DaVonte Lewis, a physics and astronomy major from Camp Springs, Maryland, studied harnessing disorder in quantum materials. His mentor is assistant professor of physics and astronomy, Hanna Terletska.
Sophie Taylor, a chemistry major from Nashville who investigated synthetic organic electrochemistry in deep eutectic solvents. Her mentor is professor of chemistry Scott Handy.
Carina Vazquez, a physics and mathematics major from Shelbyville, who studied ring resonator structures and an acoustic demultiplier. Her mentor is professor of physics and astronomy William Robertson.
Quinn Wilson, a physics and astronomy major from Murfreesboro, research analyzed the spectral characteristics of propagation teepees. Their mentor is professor of physics and astronomy Chuck Higgins.
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| Photo Credit: Casey Penston
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Middle TN STEM Innovation Hub and TSIN to Host Innovative Educator Workshops
The Middle Tennessee STEM Innovation Hub, housed within the Tennessee STEM Education Center, along with the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network, will provide three Innovative Educator Workshops for K-12 STEM educators across Middle Tennessee during June.
The first workshop, “Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), will be facilitated by Dr. Amy Phelps, Professor of Chemistry at MTSU, on June 14th. Melissa Bunch, a BioSTEM educator at Oakland High School will provide the second workshop, “Incorporating Biotechnology in the Classroom” on June 16th. The final workshop of the series, “The Journey of STEM and STEAM Designation” will be delivered at MTSU by Lea Bartch, Coordinator of Science and Social Studies for Murfreesboro City Schools, on June 23rd.
The Innovate Educator Workshops are enabled by a subgrant from the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network.
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TSEC faculty involved in deeper learning initiatives for teachers across Tennessee
Dr. Ying Jin serves as a PI for a USDA funded grant that provides professional development in deeper learning for high school agricultural teachers. The $450K grant has recruited 50 teachers from TN, and other states across the nation, to participate in the 2-year summer deeper learning institute. Collaborating organizations include Tennessee STEM Education Center, National Career Academy Coalition, and Wilson and Rutherford County Schools.
Research team aims to take on $1.25 million project
Dr. Grant Gardner (Associate Professor Biology and Associate Director TSEC) serves as the primary investigator for a NSF Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Postdoctoral Research Fellowships proposal that, if funded, will support a cohort of four postdoctoral scholars to conduct collaborative STEM Education research for two years at MTSU.
The three year, 1.25 million dollar project is a collaboration between faculty in the Mathematics and Sciences Education (MSE) Ph.D. program and the Tennessee STEM Education Center (TSEC). Co-investigators include Dr. Jennifer Kaplan (Director MSE Program, Professor Mathematics), Dr. Greg Rushton (Director TSEC, Professor Chemistry), Dr. Sarah Bleiler-Baxter (Associate Professor Mathematics) and Dr. Elizabeth Barnes (Assistant Professor Biology).
TSEC faculty receive grant to support students with disabilities in STEM
Dr. Sarah Bleiler-Baxter (Associate Professor of Mathematics and Associate Director in TSEC) serves as the primary investigator for MTSU's subaward as part of the broader NSF INCLUDES project, The Alliance of Persons with Disabilities (PWD) and Intersectionality for Inclusion, Networking, and Transition Opportunities in STEM (TAPDINTO-STEM). TAPDINTO-STEM aims to (a) increase the quantity of persons with disabilities completing associate, undergraduate, and graduate degrees in STEM disciplines, and (b) enhance communication and collaboration among post-secondary institutions, industry, government, national labs, and community in addressing the educational needs of students with disabilities in STEM disciplines nationally.
The 5-year, 10-million-dollar award is a cooperative agreement between the National Science Foundation and Auburn University, under the leadership of PI Dr. Overtoun Jenda. Currently, at the MTSU site, eleven students with disabilities in STEM are engaged in a mentoring program under the direction of Dr. Bleiler-Baxter and Dr. Chaney Mosley, aimed at supporting mutual learning among students, faculty, and staff at MTSU about the needs and accomplishments of students with disabilities in STEM.
TSEC Investigates Teacher Retention in National Collaboration Study
Dr. Gregory Rushton (Director, Tennessee STEM Education Center [TSEC] and Professor of Chemistry) serves as the primary investigator for a subaward as part of a larger NSF DUE: NOYCE Track 4 project, Exploring the Impact of Noyce Master Teaching Fellowship Programs on Teacher Retention: The Role of Motivation, Leadership, and School-Work Environment.
The purpose of this project is to study how motivation, leadership skills, diversity dispositions, social networks, and school-work environment relate to the retention and persistence of Noyce Master Teaching Fellows in high-need schools. This $200,000, three-year project is a collaborative effort between MTSU and Rice University (PI: Dr. Adem Ekmecki), University of Rochester (PI: Dr. Cynthia Callard), Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (PI: Dr. David Gibson), University of Arizona (PI: Dr. Rebecca McGraw), University of Louisiana-Lafayette (PI: Dr. Peter Sheppard), University of California-San Diego (PI: Dr. Guershon Harel), and Kennesaw State University (Lead by Dr. Michelle Head). Currently, the MTSU team is leading the social network analysis component of the project.
TSEC Devoted to Improve Chemistry Classroom Discourse
Dr. Gregory Rushton (Director, Tennessee STEM Education Center [TSEC] and Professor of Chemistry) serves as the primary investigator for a subaward as part of the broader NSF IUSE project, Collaborative Research: Investigating Classroom Discourse in Active Learning Environments for Large Enrollment Chemistry Courses.
This project seeks to (1) characterize the essential features of effective task design and implementation that foster productive engagement of diverse students in discourse practices known to promote meaningful learning and (2) to develop and disseminate resources to support instructors in creating and implementing instructional tasks that facilitate consistently productive discourse across diverse instructional settings and student populations.
This $600,000, four-year project is a collaborative effort between MTSU and three other institutions: University of Arizona (PI: Dr. Vicente Talanquer), University of Iowa (PI: Dr. Renee Cole), and Stony Brook University (PI: Lisa Shah). The MTSU site is currently investigating questions related to how instructor facilitation strategies influence student discourse and the experiences of English learners in POGIL based classrooms.
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Published Manuscripts
Haruna, S., Ritchey, E. Mosley, C., & Ku, S. (2022). Effects of cover crops on soil hydraulic properties in a growing season. Soil Use and Management, 1– 14. https://doi.org/10.1111/sum.12803
Ofem, B., Beeth, M., Doering, J., Fink, K. T., Konz, R., M, Mohr-Schroeder, M., Polizzi, S.J., Roehrig, G., Rushton, G.T., Sheppard, K., “An exploration of communities of practice in the STEM teacher context: What predicts ties of retention?” Journal of STEM Teacher Education (in press).
Reid, J. W., & Weigel, E. (2022). Examining perspectives of teaching among biology teaching assistants. The Journal of College Science Teaching, 51.
Reid, J. W., Hardee, A. B., Criswell, B. A., Elrod, M., Berryhill Jr., S. B., & Rushton, G. T. (2022). Empowering teacher leaders: The role of research in changing teacher leaders’ sense of themselves as professionals. The International Journal of Leadership in Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603124.2022.2045629
Yow, Jan A., Brett A. Criswell, Christine Lotter, Wendy M. Smith, Gregory T. Rushton, Paula Adams, Sally Ahrens, Anna Hutchinson, and Greysi Irdam. (2021). "Program attributes for developing and supporting STEM teacher leaders." International Journal of Leadership in Education, 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603124.2021.2006794
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Presentations Given or Accepted
Ayanbola, O. T., Scott, F., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Gardner, G. E., Rushton, G., James, O., & Heath, A. L. (2022, January 13). Building community and creating a space for vulnerability in discussion of inclusive pedagogy among STEM faculty. Poster session presented at the Southeastern STEM Education Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Heath, A. L., James, O., Scott, F., Ayanbola, O. T., Gardner, G. E., & Rushton, G. T. (2022, February 24). Strength- and weakness-based faculty peer observation in undergraduate STEM instruction. Poster session presented at the Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (RUME) Conference, Boston, MA (Remote).
Gardner, G., E. James, O., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Rushton, G. T., Scott, F., Heath, A. L., & Ayangbola, O. T. (2022, January 14). Faculty awareness of inclusivity and diversity needs within STEM classrooms. Session presented at the Southeastern STEM Education Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Gardner, G. E., James, O., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Rushton, G. T. , Scott, F., Heath, A. L., & Ayangbola, O. T. (2022, March 29). Faculty awareness and responsiveness to inclusivity in STEM classrooms. Session presented at the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) Annual Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (Remote).
Heath, A. L., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., & Kirby, J. E. (2022, January 13). Group reflection on mathematical creativity in proving. Session presented at the Southeastern STEM Education Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Heath, A. L., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., & Kirby, J. E. (2022, February 26). Group reflection on mathematical creativity in proving. Session presented at the Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (RUME) Conference, Boston, MA.
Kirby, J. E., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Reed, S. D. (2022, January 14). Sources of authority for mathematics students in an introduction to proof course. Session to be presented at the Southeastern STEM Education Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Kirby, J. E., Bleiler-Baxter, S. K., Reed, S. D. (2022, February 24). Authority manifestations in small-group proving. Poster session presented at the Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (RUME) Conference, Boston, MA (Remote).
Matthews, L., Niravong, T., de Araujo Bryan, M., Jin, Y., Bowen, C., Barnes, M. E., American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), "Exploring Undergraduate Biology Students’ Attitudes and Science Communication about COVID19 and COVID19 Vaccines, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America. (February 2022)
Reed, S. D., Kirby, J. E., & Bleiler-Baxter, S. K. (2022, February 24). Students in an Introduction to Proofs course recognizing when they are ‘stuck.’ Poster session presented at the Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (RUME) Conference, Boston, MA (Remote).
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| Thank You to our TSEC Faculty and Staff
Gregory Rushton, Ph.D., Director
Kevin Ragland, Ph.D., Associate Director
Casey Penston, Coordinator
Steven Berryhill, Ph.D., Research Scientist
Sarah K. Bleiler-Baxter, Ph.D., Associate Director
Grant E. Gardner, Ph.D., Associate Director
Ying Jin, Ph.D., Associate Director
Chaney Mosley, Ph.D., Assistant Director
Sarah Gwinn, Grant Writer
Joshua W. Reid, Ph.D., Post Doctoral Research Fellow
Sherry Schafer, Support Staff
Shaghayegh Fateh, Graduate Assistant
Andrea Reeder, Graduate Assistant
Hunter Brady, Undergraduate Student Worker
Brooke Busbee, Undergraduate Student Worker
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Middle Tennessee State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, status as a protected veteran, or any other category protected by law. See our full policy at mtsu.edu/iec.
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