For Immediate Release
May 1, 2010
Contact: Michael Mino, Director-The Center for 21st Century Skills @ Education Connection 860-567-0863 ext. 155, fax: 860-567-3381, mino@educationconnection.org
Celebrate CT Student Work Today for a Sustainable World Tomorrow
(HARTFORD, CT) — Over 1,200 CT middle and high school students will present team “green” projects in information technology, biotechnology, e-commerce, engineering, science research, health careers, and digital media to be judged by a panel of business professionals, field experts, and higher education faculty at the 2010 Connecticut Student Innovation Exposition (CT EXPO) at the Connecticut Convention Center May 8, 2010.
This event is free and open to the public!
Join us for the opening ceremony starting at 9:00 AM with a welcome from Lt. Gov. Fedele. Also joining the opening ceremony and delivering the keynote presentation will be Jason Wasserman of Blue Sky Studios. Visit students at their booths from 10:00 AM until 3:00 PM as they enthusiastically share their challenges, solutions, Web sites, original computer games, research, marketing materials, and much more!
According to Thomas Friedman, author of The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century, and Hot, Flat, and Crowded, “the task of creating the tools, systems, energy sources, and ethics that will allow the planet to grow in cleaner, more sustainable ways is going to be the biggest challenge of our lifetime.” (Friedman, Thomas. Hot, Flat, and Crowded. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2008.) Michael Mino, Director of The Center for 21st Century Skills @ Education Connection, agrees. He and his staff develop and manage technology-rich, project- based courses and programs for middle and high school students in conjunction with Connecticut Career Choices (CCC). Says Mino, “We’re preparing a workforce for the 21st century by giving students real-life challenges and the skills to address those challenges. That includes developing solutions that promote a sustainable future for our planet.”
CCC student participants will be joined on May 8th by the Connecticut Pre-Engineering Program, the Connecticut Community Colleges’ College of Technology, Real World Design Challenge, and the Regional Center for Next Generation Manufacturing. Middle and high school students will display their innovative projects from the following districts: Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Berlin, Bethel, Bloomfield, Bridgeport, Bristol, Brookfield, Danbury, East Haddam, East Haven, Falls Village, Hartford, Lyme-Old Lyme, Manchester, Middletown, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Newtown, Norwalk, Oxford, Simsbury, Stamford, Stonington, Southbury, Terryville, Thomaston, Waterbury, Winsted, and Woodbury.
Faculty members from these higher-education institutions will also participate: University of Bridgeport, Central CT State University, Gateway Community College, Manchester Community College, Quinnipiac University, Southern CT State University, Tunxis Community College, University of New Haven, and Yale University. The CT EXPO is the culminating event for Connecticut students engaged in a variety of innovative, cutting-edge education programs in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Come celebrate the innovative “green” spirit of our Connecticut students at the Connecticut Convention Center May 8th starting at 9:00 AM!
For more information, please visit www.ctxpo.org or contact Mr. Michael Mino, Director- The Center for 21st Century Skills @ Education Connection at 860-567-0863 ext. 155 or via e-mail mino@educationconnection.org
About The Center for 21st Century Skills @ Education Connection The Center for 21st Century Skills promotes the advancement of 21st century skills, technical education, and careers by creating and implementing “blended learning” environments that combine traditional face-to-face classroom learning with online instruction. It is an organizational unit of Education Connection, a CT Regional Educational Service Center. www.skills21.org, www.ctcconline.org, www.educationconnection.org
About Connecticut Career Choices (CCC) CCC is an initiative funded by the CT Office for Workforce Competitiveness to engage CT middle and high school students in a variety of challenging STEM-related courses. With the help of the Battelle Technology Practice Partnership, CCC combines innovative, Internet-based curriculum with experiential learning opportunities, such as hosting classroom speakers, company tours, job shadows, and teacher externships. www.ctcareerchoices.org