“Governor Edward G. Rendell and Secretary of Education Dr. Gerald L. Zahorchak Welcome You to the Pennsylvania RWDC”

    

2009 Pennsylvania State Champions ~ Cumberland Valley High School, Mechanicsburg

Jeff Pope, Vald Grinevich, Cody Ambrose, Kyle Gochenaur

On behalf of Governor Rendell and Secretary Zahorchak, we welcome you to Pennsylvania’s Real World Design Challenge (RWDC). Pennsylvania is pleased to be one of the states participating in the RWDC as this opportunity aligns with the Department of Education’s efforts to build educational capacity within our schools through the Standards Aligned System (SAS). SAS is a framework based upon research that supports the notion that great schools and school systems tend to have six common elements: Clear Standards, Fair Assessments, Curriculum Framework, Instruction, Materials and Resources and Interventions.

In partnership with the Department of Education, Pennsylvania’s deployment of the RWDC is being supported by the Pennsylvania STEM Initiative. The PA STEM Initiative is the Commonwealth's network of partners committed to increasing educational and career exploration opportunities in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics disciplines for Pennsylvania students. For more information on Pennsylvania STEM Initiative, visit www.pasteminitiative.com.

There are five Regional STEM Networks, with oversight and central support provided by the Pennsylvania STEM Initiative and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Teachers interested in participating in the Real World Design Challenge should contact their PA STEM Regional Representative prior to registering for the Challenge. This helps to establish a regional approach to Pennsylvania’s representation in the RWDC and links teachers to resources that may be available in their STEM Region. To locate which of the five PA STEM Regions your school is located, please visit www.pasteminitiative.com.

State and Regional contacts are provided below.  Please contact the person from your region to schedule an in-person training.  If you need additional help, contact a state contact.

State Contacts:

William F. Bertrand, Technology Education Advisor
Bureau of Teaching and Learning Support, Division of Standards and Curriculum
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Phone: 717.783.6848
Email: wbertrand@state.pa.us

Lenny Sweeny, Educational Statistics
Bureau of Educational Technology
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Phone: 717-214-8215

Central Region

Allison Felix
Central Region STEM Coordinator
Director
Science Outreach Center
Saint Francis University
Phone: 814) 472-3871
Email: afelix@francis.edu; centralstem@francis.edu

Northeast Region

N. Paul Schembari
North East Regional STEM Coordinator
East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania
Phone: 570-422-3661
Email: schembari@po-box.esu.edu

Southeast Region

Tony Girifalco
South East Regional STEM Coordinator
Executive Vice President
DVIRC
Phone: 215-464.8550
Email: ajg@dvirc.org

Northwest Region

Ken Borland
Northwest Region STEM Coordinator
Consultant to the Pennsylvania Department of Instruction
Phone: 814-449-6477
Email: borlandken@roadrunner.com

Southwest Region

Barry Nathan
Southwest Region STEM Coordinator
Catalyst Connection
Phone: 412-918-4241
Email: bnathan@catalystconnection.org
 
Michael F. Amrhein
National Center for Robotics Engineering Technology Education
California University
Phone: 724-938-5906
Email: Amrhein@cup.edu

For free online training simply visit http://www.ptcacademy.com/ and get started right away.
 
Teachers and Coaches need to do at least one training (either in-person or online) to participate. 
Teachers and Coaches are, however, encouraged to do both in-person and online training.

 

Professional development for teachers:

• Each team will receive FREE permanent licenses and upgrades of Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire design software (300 seats plus student home use, worth $900,000) and one license of FloEFD.Pro fluid dynamics simulation program.
• Learn a cutting-edge and multi-purpose CAD software program including collaboration tools.

Opportunities for Students:

• Learn professional tools and work with mentors from the US Department of Energy (DOE), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), industry experts and higher education.
• Tackle a real-world engineering problem in a context that addresses national standards in science, mathematics and technology.
• Have submissions evaluated by a Peer Review Committee, just as professional work is reviewed.

State News

TAKING FLIGHT - CV student engineers' wing design moves to national level, March 18, 2009

Gov. Rendell Says Pennsylvania Students To Help Aviation Industry Go Green With ‘Real World Design Challenge’, September 15, 2008

Photos

Secretary of Education, Dr. Gerald L. Zahorchak announces Pennsylvania’s participation in the Real World Design Challenge.

Dr. Ralph Coppola, Director, Global Government & Strategic Education Programs, Parametric Technology Corporation (PTC) provides more details on the strategic significance of the Real World Design Challenge.

Fran Favara, Director, Engine and Propeller Directorate, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) discusses private-public partnerships in developing the STEM pipeline.

Pro/Engineer Trainer Michael Amrhein (left) is presented with an Innovation Tools Certificate by Dr. Zahorchak and Dr. Coppola.

In celebration of Pennsylvania’s participation in the RWDC, Dr. Coppola and Dr. Zahorchak (left) are joined by teacher/coach Ann Camp with students Justin Nester and Alyssa Nester from the Commonwealth Connections Academy.