Research as a driver of educational innovation: Some reflections on the outreach program of an NSF collaborative research in chemistry project

ANYL 273

Dennis H. Evans, dhevans@email.arizona.edu, Department of Chemistry, The University of Arizona, 1306 E. University Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85721-0041
Educational components of federally funded research projects in chemistry are now commonplace, with constituencies ranging from K-to-12 to undergraduate students. One such project is the Collaborative Research in Chemistry program at the University of Arizona that is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The research objective of the project is the development of novel catalysts for hydrogen generation, catalysts inspired by the active site of iron-only hydrogenase enzymes. The outreach component of the project is a summer program for local high school students and high school teachers. The first program was held in the summer of 2006 and this talk will focus upon the experiences gained in this outreach project.