To teach and learn together: KBS K-12 Partnership marks 25 years of professional development programs

In 1998, KBS and MSU faculty Phil Robertson, Kay Gross and Mike Klug responded to a K-12 supplement request from the National Science Foundation, or NSF. They wrote, “To supplement our project, ‘Organisms in the Agricultural Landscape’…we request $15,000 for costs associated with initiating a K-12 outreach program.”

That request was granted, and the KBS K-12 Partnership was formed through the KBS Long-Term Ecological Research, or LTER, program. This year, the Partnership celebrated its 25th anniversary and continues to provide professional development experiences for K-12 teachers and informal educators.

A thriving program

The program, originally called the K-12 Science Literacy Partnership, launched in 1999 with 22 middle-
school science teachers joining faculty from the KBS LTER and the MSU College of Education. Driven by teacher input and direction, the group organized a series of workshops to develop inquiry-based modules about succession, nutrient cycling and energy flow, inspired by the agricultural research and landscapes at KBS. Over the next decade, the Partnership incorporated several initiatives, funded by the National Science Foundation, including Research Experiences for Teachers, the Math Science Partnership Program, and two 5-year GK-12 Graduate Fellowship awards.

Over the past 15 years, the Partnership has flourished. In 2011 the Data Nuggets Project, which produces free classroom activities—co-designed by scientists and teachers—to bring research and data into the classroom, was founded. The Teaching Science Outdoors Program, or TSO, which offers place-based science experiences for K-5 teachers, began in 2015. In 2018, the TSO: Urban Partnerships Program  expanded efforts to support elementary science teachers in Michigan’s largest urban school districts, Detroit and Lansing. During the pandemic, programs pivoted to an online format, which brought record participation and expanded the audience to include teachers from across Michigan

The KBS K-12 Partnership continues to thrive. More than 115 educators from 59 districts attended the 2024 offerings, including the annual spring and summer programs.

Reflections on 25 years

At the anniversary celebration in June, retired Hastings High School teacher Marty Buehler, said:

“All teachers know that attending professional development creates more work than being in the classroom to teach…But then you get here and you feel different. You’re with your friends and you make these relationships…which transcend the little bit of time you are gone from your kids. Because what you gathered and garnered was so valuable, it made a difference in teaching.”

Kara Haas, KBS K-12 outreach and education coordinator, said “The magic of the Partnership lies in the long-term relationships we form with each other and the landscapes of Michigan. Teachers, informal educators and scientists connect and learn together while exploring our area’s ecology through place-based experiences, current research and complex data.”

Elizabeth Schultheis, outreach and education coordinator for the KBS LTER, said “It’s because of these long-term relationships with teachers that we’ve learned so much about the needs of Michigan students and educators, and are able to build programming that responds to those needs.”

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This feature is an excerpt from the 2023-24 KBS Annual Report. Read the full report here.
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