Contests

Abstract

The Intel Science Talent Search 2015

The Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS), a program of Society for Science and the Public (SSP), is the nation’s most prestigious science research competition for high school seniors. In partnership with Westinghouse since 1942 and with Intel since 1998, SSP has provided a national stage for our nation’s best and brightest young scientists to present original research to nationally recognized professional scientists. In over 80 years, more than 147,000 students from U.S. high schools in all 50 states and territories have completed independent science research projects and submitted entries. More than 2,800 finalists have received more than $11 million in awards to support their college educations, and thousands of semifinalists have received millions more. There are four components of the application: (a) basic information and essay questions; (b) documents such as the research report, internal review board summary, and applicable approvals; (c) three to five recommendations for each applicant; and (d) transcripts. Students should submit an independent research report demonstrating research ability, scientific originality, and creative thinking in science, mathematics, or engineering. The award amounts include $100,000 for 1st place; $75,000 for 2nd place; $50,000 for 3rd place; $40,000 for 4th place; $30,000 for 5th place; $25,000 for 6th and 7th places; $20,000 for 8th, 9th, and 10th places; and $7,500 for 30 finalists. SSP should receive all transcripts and recommendations by November 5, 2014. All portions of the application should be received by November 12, 2014. For more information, please visit http://student.societyforscience.org/intel-sts/

2014 Siemens Competition

The Siemens Competition in Math, Science, and Technology is the nation’s premier science research competition for high school students. Since 1999, the Siemens Foundation has been inspiring and rewarding high-achieving high school students who excel in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). For 2014, the Siemens Foundation will partner with Discovery Education, a leader in digital learning, to administer the 2014 Siemens Competition. Students registering for the competition must be enrolled in high school (Grades 9-12) during the 2014-2015 school year. Students may enter the competition as an individual, two-member team, or three-member team. Scholarships for winning projects range from $1,000 to $100,000. Registration opens on May 1, 2014. All competition materials are due on September 30, 2014. For more information, please visit http://www.discoveryeducation.com/siemenscompetition/

SAVE THE FROGS! Art Contest

Some amphibian populations are in danger of a mass extinction crisis, yet most people are completely unaware. This contest exists to encourage all nature lovers to create their coolest frog artwork and will therefore raise awareness of the amphibian extinction problem by getting people involved and interested. Submissions of original artwork will be used on t-shirts, stickers, posters, coffee mugs, hats, and in greeting cards and books, to raise money for SAVE THE FROGS! amphibian conservation efforts and for publicity. Artwork may be hand-drawn or digitally produced and can feature frogs, toads, salamander, newts, or caecilians. It can be either full-color or black and white. The Grand Prize winner will receive (a) $100 CASH, (b) $75 worth of “Frog Cash” to be used for any of the environmentally friendly merchandise in the SAVE THE FROGS! Gift Center, (c) become an official judge of next year’s SAVE THE FROGS! Art Contest, (d) see their winning artwork placed at the top of this page, and (e) receive a frog fame. The second and third place artists will receive $75 worth of “Frog Cash” to be used for any of the merchandise in the SAVE THE FROGS! Gift Center. Contest winners and honorable mentions will also be acknowledged on this website, along with a picture of their artwork. Category winners will be chosen from the following categories: (a) under 10 years old, (b) 10 to 13 years old, (c) 14 to 17 years old, and (d) 18 years and older. The Grand Prize winner may be chosen from any category. Each person is allowed to submit up to three entries. All artwork must refer to SAVE THE FROGS! Submissions are due on October 15. For more information, please visit http://savethefrogs.com/art/

WorldWide Kids Drawings

WorldWide Kids Drawings is a company dedicated to help kids ages 6 to 17 show their artistic talent. Judging will occur in three different age categories: ages 6 through 8, ages 9 through 12, and ages 13 through 17. Drawings must be original and authentic and students should explain what their drawing represents. All submissions will be judged on their original style and artistic value. Applicants should submit all drawings on 8.5″ × 11″ paper (letter size only) and email them to worldwidekidsllc@gmail.com along with a $10.00 entry fee. The first half of the contest starts from January through June and the second half starts July through December each year. Winners will be announced in July the same year and January the following year. Prizes will be awarded as follows: First Place—$1,000; Second Place—$500; and Third Place—$250. For more information, please visit http://worldwidekidsdrawings.com/

Grants and Awards

The U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, has announced Research grant programs. The central purpose of the Institute’s research grant programs is to provide parents, educators, students, researchers, policy makers, and the general public with reliable and valid information about education practices that support learning and improve academic achievement and access to education opportunities for all students. The Institute’s National Center for Education Research (NCER) will hold six competitions: two competitions for education research; one competition for education research training; one competition for research on statistical and research methodology in education; one competition for evaluation of state and local education programs and policies; and one competition for researcher–practitioner partnerships in education research (see below for more detail regarding this research). The Institute’s National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) will hold four competitions: two competitions for special education research; one competition for special education research training; and one competition for a new Accelerating the Academic Achievement of Students With Disabilities Research Initiative. Eligible applicants must have the ability and capacity to conduct scientifically valid research such as public and private agencies and institutions. Maximum awards range from $40,000 to $1,000,000. Most applications are due September 20, 2012. For more information about specific grant programs, visit http://ies.ed.gov/funding/ncser_progs.asp

The U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, has announced the Researcher–Practitioner Partnerships in Education Research. The Research Partnership topic provides funding for new partnerships to form as well as for existing partnerships to expand into new areas of research. The Research Partnership topic differs from the Institute’s other research grant topics and programs in that it provides support for partnership’s development of a research plan. As part of developing the research plan, partnerships are expected to complete initial research to help understand their education issue and develop future research. To this end, partnerships may analyze secondary data and/or collect primary data and analyze it. However, given the limit on the size of the grant award, the Institute expects that any large-scale data collection will not be possible under the Research Partnership project. Applications must include a research institution and a U.S. education agency (e.g., state education agencies, local education agencies, community college districts, state and city postsecondary systems) proposing to work together in partnership. Partnerships may include more than one state or local education agency and more than one research institution. Research projects can last 1 to 2 years. The maximum award is $400,000. The application package is due September 4, 2014. For more information, visit http://ies.ed.gov/funding/ncer_rfas/partnerships.asp

The National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsors the STEM-C (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, including Computing) Partnerships program. It is a major research and development effort of two NSF Directorates, the Directorate for Education and Human Resources and the Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering. The STEM-C Partnerships program supports Partnerships that promote effective K-12 STEM education, building knowledge of teaching and learning in ways that deepen understanding and stimulate further exploration of STEM education in both in- and out-of-school settings. The Partnerships’ cross-disciplinary teams call upon the expertise of K-12 teachers, cognitive scientists; educational, developmental, and social psychologists, and other education researchers. The Partnerships provide the context and environment for the effective preparation, professional development, and ongoing support of K-12 teachers. Changes at the undergraduate level related to the preparation of K-12 STEM teachers are an implicit expectation of the work because the STEM-C Partnership is a K-16 endeavor. Projects are encouraged to look at scalable models of effective learning and professional development mediated by evolving computational devices and advances in cyberinfrastructure as well as ongoing developments in models, resources, tools, and their application to learning, content, delivery, and pedagogy. The program supports transformative research and its use by varied research, development, and implementation communities. The needs of a particular Partnership related to advancing the teaching and learning of any of the STEM disciplines at the K-12 level should drive the focus of the Partnership’s work. The inclusion of computer science, computational thinking, computational science, or computing in K-12 STEM instruction is welcome, but not required. Eligible applicants are academic institutions, non-profit organizations, state and local governments. The Principal Investigator and Co-Principal Investigators for a Partnership must include individuals who represent the various fields that are the focus of study, including a K-12 Core Partner Organizational representative and an individual with an advanced STEM degree from a Core Partner. Maximum award for 5 years is $7.5 million. Anticipated deadline is March 18, 2015. For more information, visit http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=505006&org=NSF&sel_org=NSD