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NNM
Math and Science Academy
With a core commitment to helping northern New Mexico
schools and nonprofits improve the quality of regional
education, the LANL Foundation has supported the Northern
New Mexico Math and Science Academy (MSA) since 2000
to increase student achievement and learning and affect
systemic reform. MSA is a three-year professional development
program for teachers and principals that includes a three-week
summer institute (two weeks pedagogy and learning theory,
and one week mathematics content), biweekly team meetings
and online discussions, quarterly cognitive coaching
sessions and cohort meetings, portfolio work, and events
to showcase student work each semester.
In partnership with New Mexico State University, MSA
has also instituted a Masters of Arts Program in Education
to further develop participating teachers’ content
knowledge and teaching skills. Currently, 54 out of 66
MSA teachers are enrolled in the three-year, 36 credit-hour
program.
Founded in 2000 by the Northern New Mexico Council for
Excellence in Education (NNMCEE) in partnership with
Los Alamos National Laboratory, MSA was established to
increase student learning and achievement by improving
teacher practice. Using standards-based education and
research-based concepts and instructional practices,
three teaching staff (Cathy Berryhill, Carol Brown and
Lorenzo Gonzales) and a cognitive coach (Janice Vicente)
have worked with over 125 elementary and middle school
teachers and principals in the core areas of math, science,
social studies, language arts, and data analysis at Chama
Valley, Española Public/Military, Mora Independent,
Pojoaque Valley, and Taos Municipal Schools to implement
improvements in curriculum, assessment, and instruction
reaching over 3,000 students.
A reform program that places student learning at the
center of all educational activities and professional
development efforts, MSA is transformational rather than
additive in nature. Steady growth in MSA student achievement
as reported by the National Center for Research on Evaluation,
Standards and Student Testing (CRESST) can be seen at
www.lanl.gov/education/teachers/.
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MSA
works toward improving the quality of regional education
and increasing student learning and achievement |
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