Research Team:
Research Team:
Research Team:
Research Team:
CTI will host the Science Research Experience for Teachers (SRET) Showcase and Reception on Thursday, Sept. 7, 5:00-5:50 p.m. at the Halton Reading Room at UNC Charlotte’s Atkins Library. This event is free and open to the public. Guests are invited to learn about Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teachers’ work with professors in research laboratories at UNC Charlotte and Davidson College this summer.
Fourteen CMS teachers collaborated with professors and graduate assistants, as part of CTI’s 2017 SRET during June and July. These CTI Fellows worked in four different laboratories led by university and college professors: Dr. Susan Trammell, physics and optical science, UNCC; Marcus Jones, chemistry, UNCC; Dr. Tom Schmedake, chemistry, UNCC; and Dr. Erland Stevens, chemistry, Davidson College.
During the Sept. 7 reception, the SRET teacher fellows, professors and graduate assistants will provide poster presentations and discuss their unique collaborations and how this research experience translates to their classrooms and their students. Pizza and soft drinks will be served. Parking details here.
For an overview of each research team and their research topics, see SRET.
CTI and the Greenspon Center for Peace and Social Justice hosted a curriculum planning workshop for CMS teachers on Aug. 15 at Queens University of Charlotte, presented by the Equal Justice Initiative (Montgomery, AL). Committed to changing the narrative about race in America, EJI produces groundbreaking reports, discussion guides, teacher education workshops, lesson plans and other educational materials, as well as short films that explore our nation’s history of racial injustice. EJI recently launched a national effort to create new spaces, markers, and memorials that address the legacy of slavery, lynching, and racial segregation, which shapes many issues today.
Long-time and greatly admired East Mecklenburg High School teacher Larry Bosc, now retired, coordinated the workshop. Larry is a former CTI Fellow who participated in CTI’s African American Literature of the Civil Rights Movement at Davidson College in 2012. (See civil rights-related curriculum units from that seminar HERE.) Following the day-long workshop with the EJI and his CMS teaching colleagues, Larry provided this report on the day:
Given recent events in Charlottesville, last Tuesday’s seminar delivered by EJI staff Kiara Boone and Jonathan Kubakundimana couldn’t have been more appropriate. Although EJI’s work in criminal justice reform has righted many wrongs, their focus in this seminar was on their stated message that “we cannot reach reconciliation without first acknowledging the truth about our past, and until we confront this history and its legacy, we will remain challenged by extremism and racial bias.” The event, sponsored by the Charlotte Teachers Institute and the Greenspon Center for Peace and Social Justice at Queens University, was attended by 27 CMS teachers. It began in the morning with presentations by Boone and Kubakundimana featuring their research into racial violence in American and their plans for a museum and memorial to victims of the over 4,000 lynchings in the South from 1877-1955. Additionally, they made available to all participants numerous pamphlets containing this information and exposed teachers to their curriculum guide available on their website. The afternoon session featured small group work as teachers processed the information given to them in the morning and began work on their lesson plans. Judging by teacher comments, the morning presentation had given them some great energy as they prepare to meet their students in the weeks to come.
CMS teacher Kheiston Tilford had this to say about the workshop: One of the best PD’s I’ve ever been to. I left feeling honored to tell my history, empowered and compelled to do more research and ask more questions about my family history and resources….Great resources to help us facilitate discussion inside and outside of our classrooms! ??❤️? Thank you!
About 25 of our dedicated Fellows rose early on a Saturday morning (May 20) to start their curriculum unit work at the CTI Prospectus Writing & Research Jam at UNC Charlotte Center City. They fueled up with a full breakfast buffet and then got down to energetic planning with UNC Charlotte Librarians Abby Moore and Jenna Rinalducci, CTI teacher leaders and staff, and each other. It was a great collaborative effort to set up Fellows with technology, clear goals and creative ideas for moving forward with their research.
Abby and Jenna shared detailed research support websites they developed for CTI Fellows, designed to explore specific content areas related to each seminar:
http://guides.library.uncc.edu/cti2017
http://guides.library.uncc.edu/memorials
Davidson College Librarian James Sponsel also organized a Davidson research support site for Fellows and an easy to use guide to the Zotero citation and bibliography management tool.
Many thanks to Abby, Jenna and James for their generous dedication to CTI Fellows, and to these experienced teacher leaders who provided valuable feedback to our new and returning Fellows at the Writing Jam: Steering Committee Members Miesha Gadsden, Deb Jung, Deb Semmler and Connie Wood; and Seminar Coordinators Amethyst Klein,Wendy Potter, Rima Sohl and Amy Thomas.
CTI Fellows will have the summer to research their topic areas in depth and refine their objectives and content focus. All Fellows are charged to bring their seminar learning back to their classrooms through the original CTI Curriculum Units they create, specifically for their own students.
CHARLOTTE – May 2017 – Charlotte Teachers Institute welcomed its new cohort of 104 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teachers into its innovative, interdisciplinary seminars for 2017.
“This year’s CTI Fellows represent a wide range of CMS teachers, from pre-kindergarten to high school, they teach courses from physics to French and literacy to special education,” said CTI Director Scott Gartlan. “We continue to create significant growth opportunities for teacher leaders looking to deepen their knowledge base and impact the lives of their students.”
CTI’s eight concurrent seminars began with an orientation at Discovery Place Science in April and will run through November. CTI seminars are led by faculty experts in the arts and sciences, including five from UNC Charlotte and three from Davidson College.
In each seminar, 13 CMS teachers (CTI Fellows) and a faculty leader work closely together in exploring a topic in depth, with each teacher creating a new curriculum designed for his or her own students. CTI Fellows receive full access to both Davidson College and UNC Charlotte resources, as well as memberships to Discovery Place and the Charlotte Museum of History, and complimentary tickets to the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Art + Culture and the Levine Museum. Each Fellow is awarded a $1,500 stipend and continuing education credits upon completion of the seminar.
The 2017 Seminars, Leaders, Coordinators and Fellows include:
Using Mathematics to Understand Social Issues
Seminar Leader: Anthony Fernandes, Mathematics and Statistics, UNC Charlotte
Seminar Coordinator: Rima Solh, Math, Southwest Middle School
Jeffrey Barnes, Math, Rocky River HS
Antowanna Carpenter, CTE/Business, Butler HS
Javier Cely, Math, Collinswood Language
Emiko Furuya, Fifth Grade, Waddell Language Academy
Katelyn Gardepe, Fifth Grade , Selwyn ES
Mary Catherine Grant, Third Grade, McAlpine ES
Camay Hunter, Math, West Charlotte HS
Gwendalyn Iversen, Second Grade, Winding Springs ES
Paige Laurain, Math, West Charlotte HS
Kelly McManus, Math, Martin Luther King, Jr. MS
Vertina Rhim, Math, Whitewater MS
Jimi’ E. Rogers, Kindergarten, Nations Ford ES
Media and Minorities: Unpacking Stereotypes
Seminar Leader: Debra C. Smith, Africana Studies, UNC Charlotte
Seminar Coordinator: Franchone Bey, English, West Charlotte High School
Eli Davis, Special Education, Lincoln Heights Academy
Audrey Dorante, History, East Mecklenburg HS
DeNise Gerst, Science, Barringer Academic Center
Mic Hamrick, Kindergarten, E.E. Waddell Language Academy
Shanique Lee, English, North Mecklenburg HS
Marielle Matheus, Third Grade, Irwin Academic Center
Latonda Mitchell, 2nd Grade, Mountain Island Lake Academy
Chrisana Paul, Literacy, Coulwood STEM Academy
Liza Quinn, Literacy, E.E. Waddell Language Academy
Kim Scouller Second Grade Barringer Academic Center
Annette Teasdell, English/ History, North Mecklenburg HS
Torie Wheatley, English, North Mecklenburg HS
Chemical Interactions in the Body
Seminar Leader: Erland Stevens, Chemistry, Davidson College
Seminar Coordinator: Kassie Woodard, Chemistry, W.A. Hough High School
Morgan Andrews, Psychology, W.A. Hough HS
Kathleen Butler, Dance, South Charlotte MS
Phil Carver, Science, Coulwood STEM Academy
NaKreshia Cox, Science, Sedgefield MS
Mariella Duarte, ESL, Whitewater MS
Monica High, Science, Hawthorne Academy
Christie Johnson, Science/Social Studies, Northeast MS
Kari Rhoades, Biomedical Sciences, Mallard Creek HS
Jackie Smith, Forensic Science, W.A. Hough HS
Nicole Sparrow, English, Hawthorne Academy of Health Sciences
Joshua Trujillo, Science, W.A. Hough HS
Erika Williams, Biomedical Science, Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology
Memorials, Memories, and American Identity (meets at the Levine Museum of the New South)
Seminar Leader: Emily Makas, Architectural and Urban History, UNC Charlotte
Seminar Coordinator: Wendy Potter, Apparel Production, Butler High School
Nicole Boyd, Fifth Grade, Dilworth ES
Rhonda Doe, Kindergarten, Barringer Academic Center
Yasmin Forbes, African American Studies, West Mecklenburg HS
Tracy Kennedy, Fourth Grade/Japanese, E.E. Waddell Language Academy
Deanna Kurtz, Civics/Economics, South Mecklenburg HS
Megan McGee, Language Arts, McClintock MS
Ted Miracle, Fourth Grade, Endhaven ES
Alicia Olmeda, ESL , Coulwood STEM Academy
Beth Owens, Visual Art, Reedy Creek ES
Jaclyn Peterson, Fifth Grade, David Cox Road ES
Lecia Shockley, Third Grade, Selwyn ES
Don Winborne, Physical Education , Elon Park ES
Doing Science: Hands-On Learning in the Laboratory
Seminar Leader: Susan Trammell, Physics and Optical Science, UNC Charlotte
Seminar Coordinator: Amy Thomas, First Grade, Reedy Creek Elementary School
Scott Balay, Science, E.E. Waddell Language Academy
Geneva Bell, Science, Druid Hills Academy
Tracie Cooper, Science, Hidden Valley ES
Michelle Faggert, Science, Martin Luther King, Jr. MS
Katrina Gordon, Second Grade, Selwyn ES
Namrata Gupta, Science, Nations Ford ES
Ryan Neesam, K-5 Science, Military & Global Leadership Academy at Marie G. Davis
Curtis Overton, Technology/Design, West Mecklenburg HS
Zachary Sanford, Science, W.A. Hough HS
Meg Shuman, Fourth Grade, Barringer Academic Center
Jessica Silva, Science Lab, Rama Road ES
Victoria Woods, Science, Independence HS
Seminar Leader: Maggie McCarthy, German Studies and Film, Davidson College
Seminar Coordinator: Deena Aglialoro, Language Arts, Ranson Middle School
Janae Aiken, English , East Mecklenburg HS
Kate Allen, Visual Art, W.A. Hough HS
Lora Davis, French, South Mecklenburg HS
Jacci Fizet, Pre-Kindergarten, David Cox Road ES
Michele Lemere, English, Garinger HS
Kim Mayes, Science, Cochrane Collegiate Academy
Erin Murray, Kindergarten, Barringer Academic Center
Justin Pierce, Visual Art, W.A. Hough HS
Alejandro Rangel, Spanish, Military & Global Leadership Academy at Marie G. Davis
Emily Woods, Fourth Grade, Barringer Academic Center
Amanda Soesbee, English, North Mecklenburg HS
Jessica Young, Second Grade, Davidson ES
The Rise (and Fall) of Democracies around the World
Seminar Leader: Shelley Rigger, Political Science, Davidson College
Seminar Coordinator: Amy Strong Pasko, World History, North Mecklenburg High School
Brad Baker , U.S. History, W.A. Hough HS
Raymond Beamon, World History, West Mecklenburg HS
Arianna Bonner, Social Studies, Martin Luther King, Jr. MS
Mayra Garcia, Spanish, W.A. Hough HS
Bassam Halaweh, Arabic, Military & Global Leadership Academy at Marie G. Davis
Cheryl Hanly, Language Arts, McClintock MS
Ron King, History, West Charlotte HS
Lisa Modrow, Social Studies, Bailey MS
Christa Rawald, Social Studies, Ranson MS
Michael Richards, World History, Bailey MS
Lynn Roach, Economics, Harding University HS
Roshan Varghese, History, Butler HS
From Self to Students: Canvassing Art to Explore Identity (meets at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art)
Seminar Leaders: Adriana L. Medina, Reading and Elementary Education, UNC Charlotte, and Christopher Lawing, Vice President, Bechtler Museum of Modern Art
Seminar Coordinator: Amethyst Klein, STEAM, University Park Creative Arts School
Carla Aaron-Lopez, Visual Art, Whitewater MS
Liz Allard, Science, Cochrane Collegiate Academy
Emily Burrell, Math, Piedmont Open IB MS
Nicholas Gattis, Band, Carmel MS
Mary Draper Hager, Second Grade, Selwyn ES
Natalie Jones, Visual Art, West Charlotte HS
Jaianna McCants, Visual Art, North Mecklenburg HS
Marjorie O’Shea, Visual Art, W.A. Hough HS
Mindy Passe, Fifth Grade, Barringer Academic Center
Laura Steffy, Visual Art, North Mecklenburg HS
Andy Wertz, English/Film, Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology
Amy Whealdon, Visual Art, Reid Park ES
Charlotte Teachers Institute is grateful to PwC for their participation in CTI’s 2016 Fellows Orientation and their generous contribution of $5,000 to support this year’s CTI Fellows. PwC Carolinas Marketing and Community Relations Leader Carrie Reeder provided an enthusiastic welcome during our Orientation event April 21 at Discovery Place and shared PwC’s goals for advancing financial literacy and partnering with teachers to bridge the financial literacy gap and increase economic mobility in our community.
Read more about PwC’s commitment to Empowering Teachers to Set Up Students for Financial Success.
TRANSFORM your Teaching!
Learn all about CTI’s 2016 Seminars and how you can become a CTI Fellow at the CTI Open House on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at UNC Charlotte Center City (320 E. 9th St., Uptown Charlotte). Meet the 2016 Seminar Leaders from Davidson College and UNC Charlotte and hear from our Teacher Leaders (all CMS teachers) about how CTI can help transform your teaching.
CTI seminars are open to teachers from all grade levels and subject areas who teach full-time in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS).
Reasons to become a CTI Fellow:
Come to the Open House and hear more from our CTI Teacher Leaders about what CTI can do for you and your teaching. If possible, please REGISTER by Monday, Feb. 22 to attend the Open House.
Questions? Email info@charlotteteachers.org or call 704-687-0047.
See their Engaging New Curricula Published on the CTI Website
Charlotte Teachers Institute recently recognized more than 80 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teachers as CTI Fellows for successfully completing CTI seminars and designing engaging new curricula for their students. CTI also announced publication of these CTI Fellows’ curriculum units on the CTI website where they are available for use by teachers worldwide.
CTI seminars are led by Davidson College and UNC Charlotte professors in the arts and sciences who challenge teachers to deepen their content knowledge and think in interdisciplinary ways. CTI Fellows in turn share their creative learning with their students and other teachers,
The 2015 CTI Fellows represent grade levels preK-12, and a wide range of subjects from language arts, world history, foreign languages and art, to math, sciences, technology, and more.
“Together, these teachers spent nearly 3,000 hours over seven months attending CTI seminars at Davidson College and UNC Charlotte,” said CTI Executive Director Scott Gartlan. “In addition, they read and researched extensively, and wrote original curriculum units designed for their own students. They plan to share their new curricula with nearly 500 other CMS teachers, and almost 7,500 CMS students will learn from the units our Fellows created this year.”
Each CTI Fellow received three continuing education units and a stipend for seminar completion. CTI celebrated these teachers’ achievements at its Fellows’ Finale Celebration at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in December.
CTI presents eight, concurrent seminars each year, running April to December. CTI Fellows have created over 500 curriculum units created by CTI Fellows since 2009.
See the full list of 2015 CTI Fellows and their seminars.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) teachers will share bright new ideas for teaching and learning about energy, at a CTI event for the public on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Discovery Place in Uptown Charlotte.
This “Teachers As Scholars” program features CMS teachers who collaborated on the topic “The Global Energy Challenge,” and highlights innovative curricula they developed during a long-term CTI seminar. CTI Seminar Leader Durwin Striplin, professor of chemistry at Davidson College, will also share his energy expertise at the free Feb. 4 event.
Sponsored by Duke Energy, the program begins with a reception and viewing of the CTI-generated, energy-related curricula from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., followed by presentations and a panel discussion with Striplin and CTI Fellows until 8 p.m. Space is limited, so registration is recommended.
Featured topics and teachers include:
The event is an outgrowth of an intensive, seven-month-long CTI seminar Striplin led for CMS teachers in grades K-12, where they explored various forms of energy, the history and science behind its conservation, as well as what new technologies can address the global energy crisis. CTI Executive Director Scott Gartlan said, “We are so proud to showcase teacher-written curricula focused on energy sciences for K-12 students. These CTI Fellows are on the front lines inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers.”
Thirteen sets of extensive, energy-related curriculum units for grades K-12 were developed by teachers in Striplin’s seminar and designed specifically for their own students. All 13 are published on the CTI website, along with 500 other teacher-created curricula from CTI. Currently CTI is offering another eight seminars for 2016.
Alexandra Kennedy Edwards, Social Studies, Bailey Middle School
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2024 Seminars
2024 CTI FellowsDocumenting the Modern Black Freedom Struggle in Charlotte, NCTeaching Beyond the Text: Incorporating Artists into the Humanities ClassroomUsing Popular Culture to Teach Critical ThinkingAmerican Blindspot: Revealing the Tangled Roots of Race, Religion, and Politics in US National CultureThinking Through Artificial Intelligence Using LiteratureIntegrating Aging Education in the PK-12 Curriculum: Combating Ageism through the ClassroomNeedless Suffering: Critical Theory and the Classroom2023 Seminars
2023 CTI FellowsThe Graphic NovelRace, History, Change, and Social Activism: Baseball’s Impact on AmericaAll Roads of Thought Run Through Oz: Teaching Any Topic using The Wizard of OzA Freshwater Splash: Urban Stream Ecology and BiodiversityThe Importance of Repetition: Dance and CultureReflection and Its Role in our Cycle of Continuous ImprovementCreating a Balanced and Equitable Learning CultureIt Takes a Candidate2022 Seminars
2022 CTI FellowsExploring Memory and Race in AmericaLife Narratives in the Classroom and BeyondUnderstanding the Science of Light: A Hands-on Approach to Learning with Implications for STEM Around the WorldWhat is Identity?Charlotte as Teaching Canvas: Creating Culturally Responsive Classrooms and Equity-Mindsets by Engaging in Local African, Latinx, and Southeast Asian Diasporic SpacesCarolina Cuisine: Understanding the History and Science Behind the Evolution of our Crops and FoodMoving to Learn: Experience, Embodiment, and Transformative Teaching2021 Seminars
2021 CTI FellowsSouthern Children’s Literature in the ClassroomUsing Digital Mapping to Study History, Race, and GentrificationAddressing Childhood and Adolescent Mental Health in the ClassroomEmbodied Teaching and LearningClimate Refugee StoriesThe Philosophical Foundations of Education“Oh My, Aren’t You Wearing Some Nice Plastic!”: The Chemistry and Culture of Black Women’s HairThe Essential Peace: Innovating and Integrating Action Peacebuilding in the Classroom2020 Seminars
2020 CTI FellowsAfrican American Poetry & the Idea of Citizenship“You were IN the Water?” Urban Waterways: Problems and OpportunitiesNarratives of Muslim Life in AmericaWWI and the Shaping of the Twentieth CenturyIlluminate Yourself! The Science of GlowAnti-Racism and Pedagogy: What Does it Mean to be an Anti-racist Teacher?Mindfulness & Education: Transforming Learning Through AwarenessBlack Girl Magic (Mis)Understood: Representations and Perceptions of Black Women and Girls in the Education System2019 Seminars
2019 CTI FellowsFrankly Speaking: White PrivilegeHow to Build a HumanChildhood and the City Space in LiteratureChildren in War and ConflictClimate Science and Solution StrategiesAfrica: Beneath the HeadlinesWriting in MathematicsTime Travel: Using Music to Explore Past, Present, and Future Messages2018 Seminars
2018 CTI Fellows ListThe Art and Chemistry of LightIt’s About TimeNurturing Nature: Epigenetics as a Way to Explore Social JusticeWriting about Our Lives: A Genre Study of MemoirExploring American Sacred Values“A Person’s a Person No Matter How Small”: Teaching Human RightsInsights into Latino Communities in Charlotte TodayAnimals, Culture, and Society2017 Seminars
2017 CTI Fellows ListUsing Mathematics to Understand Social IssuesMedia and Minorities: Unpacking StereotypesChemical Interactions in the BodyMemorials, Memories, and American IdentityDoing Science: Hands-On Learning in the LaboratoryCultivating Visual LiteracyThe Rise (and Fall) of Democracies around the WorldFrom Self to Students: Canvassing Art to Explore Identity2016 Seminars
2016 CTI Fellows ListLiteracy and Literacies in the 21st CenturyHow Science is Done: A Behind the Scenes Look at Scientific ResearchThe Many Faces of Capitalism around the Globe — Past and PresentWriting with Power: No Fear HereFUNdamental Ideas in Math for Grades PreK-12It’s a Small World! Exploring Science at the Tiniest ScaleTracing the Legacy of Hispanic Cultures — 1492 to TodayExploring Memoir — From Picture Book to Digital Story2015 Seminars
2015 CTI Fellows ListExercise and the BrainWhat Makes a Nation?The Origins of Human LanguageFundamentals of Mathematics: Problem Solving and Process StandardsPeace Education: Psychological Factors that Endorse WarIntegrating Concepts in Life SciencesAfrica: Moving Beyond Popular CultureSupernatural Figures in Theatre, Film and the Brain2014 Seminars
2014 CTI Fellows ListArtificial IntelligenceThe Global Energy ChallengeMetamorphosis: Transformative ExperiencesIntersections of Science, Technology and CultureHuman AgencyThe Art of Fiction: Close Analysis, Style and the NovelVisual Storytelling in Children’s and Young Adult Literature at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + CultureHeroes, Rebels and Rock Stars: Cultural Icons in Modern Europe2013 Seminars
Charlotte as a New South City: Using the Collections at the Levine Museum of the New SouthThe Nature of Energy: How We Use and Store It to Power Our Everyday LivesMath and SportsImagining Modern Bodies: Disability and Art at the Bechtler Museum of Modern ArtGrammar for the Real WorldHuman Social GroupsChemical MagicUrban Encounters: Hispanic and African American Literature2012 Seminars
African American Literature of the Civil Rights MovementAll Immigration is Local: Exploring the New Geography of ImmigrationAmerican Political Parties: Their Failures and Their FuturesEntertaining with MathEnvironmental Science and Climate ChangeReading African American LivesReading Media Imagery: Critical Thinking and LiteracyThe Science of NASCAR2011 Seminars2010 Seminars2009 SeminarsApplications
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