Wyeth Scholars Program: An educationfocused partnership between a pharmaceutical company and its nei

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Wyeth Scholars ProgramAn education-focused
partnership between a pharmaceutical company and
its neighbor high-schools

• Graham Jones, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals
• Galeet Cohen, Central High School, Philadelphia,
  PA

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The Wyeth Scholars Program is a true partnership
A mutually beneficial partnership

• Wyeth
• Participate in raising the quality of our future
  workforce

• Local area high schools
• A managed focus on Biotech in the classroom
• Relevant, impactful scientific interaction
• Professional networks
• Support for new science teachers

• Biotech Institute
• Facilitates the exchange
• Provides best practices

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Program is specifically targeted at new teachers
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Role of the Wyeth Scholar

• Learn how to implement biotechnology into high
  school/ middle school classroom
• Facilitate interaction between students and a
  REAL scientist
• Make and follow-through on Biotech-related
  classroom goals for the year

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Role of the teacher mentor

• Provide guidance in curriculum implementation
• Encouragement
• Advice on classroom management skills
• Effective best practices and strategies

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Role of the Wyeth scientist

• Inspire
• Give background information on science concepts
• Discuss day to day activities as scientists in a
  pharmaceutical company
• Supervise and participate in a laboratory
  experiment

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Role of the support team

• Design and refine the ongoing evolving
  partnership
• Coordinate the recruitment and the selection of
  applicants
• Design and develop workshop sessions
• Provide ongoing communication throughout the year
• Professional development support
• Maintain focus on goals

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A typical year for a participant
(May)
Fall
Winter
Spring
Kick-off meeting Development plan Winter review
meeting Team visit planning School visits Spring
re-cap meeting Natl. Biotech. Teacher Leader Pgm
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Benefits and challenges

• Benefits
• Teams have degrees of freedom to custom tailor
  the program
• Includes operating budget - 250 per team
• Real relationship with a scientist brings
  authenticity
• Classroom engagement
• Knowledge retention
• Teachers build their professional networks
• Core teams
• Wider class of 15 teachers and scientists
• Bio conference
• Full team meetings involve multiple school
  districts
• Focus on educational challenges, not local
  politics

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Benefits and challenges

• Benefits
• Teams have degrees of freedom to custom tailor
  the program
• Includes operating budget - 250 per team
• Real relationship with a scientist brings
  authenticity
• Classroom engagement
• Knowledge retention
• Teachers build their professional networks
• Core teams
• Wider class of 15 teachers and scientists
• Bio conference
• Full team meetings involve multiple school
  districts
• Focus on educational challenges, not local
  politics

• Challenges
• Getting the right level
• High school level versus envelope-pushing
  scientific discussion
• Pursuing single learning goal across different
  learning environments
• Making the deliverables both impactful and
  sustainable
• Follow-through
• Keeping 3 busy team members on task
• Keeping 5 busy teams on target
• Adherence to standards
• National
• State
• Local
• Internal selling to the school administration
• Brings value to the teacher
• Brings value to the classroom

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Lessons learnedThings we got right first time

• 1 It works
• All teams deliver
• Students are more engaged

• 2 Enthusiasm gets you 90 of the way
• All participants roll up their sleeves to make
  this work
• Scientists want to be a part of the program

• 3 The other 10 is critical
• Goal-focused management
• Progress tracking
• Accountability

• 4 Cross pollination effects
• Program design enables groups to learn from each
  other

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Lessons learnedMaking changes

• 5 Second, third-year teachers are a better fit
• Feet more firmly on the ground
• More confident in their new role and ready to own
  their own development

• 6 Find the fit between the scientists expertise
  and teaching goals early
• Making efforts to integrate this discussion more
  firmly in kick-off meeting

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2 Years, 10 visits, 300 students