Charlotte Teachers Institute

On March 2, 2018, CTI brought 70 books to Ted Miracle’s classroom at Devonshire Elementary School. Dr. Miracle, one of CTI’s crowdfunding grant recipients, received $500 of books to help implement his CTI-inspired, original curriculum unit, “Living Memorials to Spectacular Scientists, Engineers, and Mathematicians.” Dr. Miracle developed his unit as a 2017 CTI Fellow in the Memorials, Memories, and American Identity seminar.  These 3rd grade students were overjoyed to see these new books donated to their classrooms.  They also had a special visit from CTI Seminar Leader Emily Makas, architectural historian at UNC Charlotte, Scott Gartlan, CTI executive director, and Robin Mara, CTI associate director.  

Through his CTI-inspired curriculum unit, Dr. Miracle seeks to inspire the next generation of scientists by introducing his students to underrepresented (e.g., African-American, Hispanic, female) scientists, mathematicians, and engineers. To do so, his students will read biographies of great leaders in STEM fields. Then, after choosing one especially inspirational to them, the students will research and build a memorial poster that they present to their class.  The goal is to get students excited to excel in school and follow in the footsteps of scientists from long ago.  

This project for 3rd grade students meets a critical need in education today and in the lives of the students in Dr. Miracle’s class. These books feature main characters that represent the diversity of the students in the classroom.  Pursuing a career “in a STEM-related field can be a gateway to economic success”, observed Dr. Miracle. “In short, I think my curriculum unit has the potential to change someone’s life by giving them a vision they may not have otherwise had for themselves.”

Thanks to the generosity of 55 community donors, CTI’s first Crowdfunding Project exceeded expectations by raising $3,622 in Fall 2017. CTI is using these funds to award project mini-grants to CTI Fellows (CMS teachers) to support implementation of new curricula they developed in CTI seminars for their students. View the full list of donors here, along with the many education supporters honored or memorialized through these donations.

CTI Fellows can apply for curriculum unit implementation mini-grants ($100-$500) by completing a brief curriculum unit funding application.

The first three mini-grant recipients are:

• Annette Teasdell, English, North Mecklenburg High – $350 for copies of the book Fences as a vehicle to enlighten students about “the importance of understanding the role ideological oppression plays in social development”. See Annette’s CU: How Come You Ain’t Never Like Me? Identity Development in August Wilson’s ‘Fences’
• Melissa Ligh, English, Vance High – $189 for a GO ANIMATE subscription package where students create online comic books while enhancing student literacy and critical thinking using technology. See Melissa’s CU: Literacy in the 21st Century: Developing Amorphic Literacy
• Ted Miracle, Science, Devonshire Elementary – $500 for 5 sets of biographies (70 in all) about African American and Hispanic scientists, mathematicians and engineers, to inspire minority students to see themselves as future leaders in STEM fields. See Ted’s CU: Living Memorials to Spectacular Scientists, Engineers, and Mathematicians

For more information contact CTI Director Scott Gartlan at scott.gartlan@uncc.edu.