Louisiana Higher Ed: New teacher help, zoo education in Alexandria?

New Master Experience

The Louisiana Tech College of Education will lead the Louisiana Department of Education’s New Teacher Experience program.

The program will focus on connecting new teachers with a mentor and support system in the early days of their teaching career.

“The New Teacher Experience is a comprehensive induction program that will provide many services to increase teacher effectiveness, enhance skills, and reduce attrition among incoming teachers,” said Laurie Carlton, an education department consultant who will lead the program.

The Academy has opened applications for an affinity group of leaders who will be new mentor teachers. The 20 selected leaders will be paid a salary of $1,000,000. Applications due next Tuesday.

“Although we cannot address all of the factors that contribute to the barriers early life teachers experience, we can help support shared learning spaces and share best practices that can help in the classroom,” said College of Education Associate Dean Lindsey Keith-Vincent.

Alexandria Zoo goes into education

The Alexandria Zoo, the city of Alexandria, and the LSU Alexandria College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics will partner to offer a focus on zoology.

The project is the first of its kind in Louisiana and one of just 10 in the state.

The purpose of the program is for students to gain practical experience that will help them gain entry into the wildlife industry. Concentration classes will be offered both on campus and on site at the zoo by experts who are employed at the zoo.

“In a world where zoos are often the only place that people can learn and interact with animals, we can help most by preparing the future of wildlife management professionals who are properly educated and prepared to maximize the educational impact and quality of a well-provided experience. – public zoos to be preserved,” UNC-A Chancellor Paul Coreil said.

Helping low-income international students

The AT&T Foundation has made a $15,000 gift to the North State University Foundation to support schools for low-income international students majoring in a STEM field.

“Many international students want to pursue careers in science, technology and mathematics in the United States, but financial needs often pose a challenge for them,” said university President Marcus Jones. “This scholarship will make a real difference in their ability to stay here and continue their studies.”

Materials innovation

Martin Sustainable Resources, an Alexandria-based materials company, has donated $2 million to Louisiana Tech University on its behalf. Forest Products Innovation Center

One will first begin construction on a center that will seek to lead to a transdisciplinary approach to problems in the material industry.

“The Forest Products Innovation Center will become a hub for discovering new methods of capturing, producing and using our renewable and sustainable forests for generations to come,” said Scott Poole, President and CEO and Chief Operating Officer of RoyOMartin, a subsidiary of Martin Sustainable Resources.

University President Les Guice said he envisions research into new uses for Louisiana’s forests, as well as focusing on processing forest products more efficiently while still helping to support sustainability.