UNH IMPACT Center

Home

Join our Mailing List

Update your user information

How can we help you?

Available Curricula

UNH IMPACT Staff

How do I get involved?

Calendar of Events

Professional Development Opportunities

Our discussion/news board

Links to Resources

CESAME IMPACT Centers Home Page

UNH Home page


E-mail us!

Barbara Hopkins

[hopkins photo]

Barbara Hopkins is the operational director of the UNH IMPACT Center and founder of the "Advancing Science Program" which provides teacher training and modern science instruments to schools for students to learn science by doing science. She has developed many professional connections between schools, local industries, and higher education faculty throughout NH. Barbara coordinates professional training, on-site classroom coaching, and after school study groups for many NH teachers each year. She has been a high school chemistry teacher for almost 20 years, most recently at Oyster River High School. She has been honored with an NSF Presidential Award, the Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical Award, and the National Foundation for the Improvement of Education Award for improving understanding in science. She has presented regularly at state and National science conferences, authored numerous successful proposals (including Agilent Technologies, NIH, etc.) and has been actively involved in the support of effective science and mathematics education, kindergarten through the undergraduate level.

 

Carolyn Karatzas

[karatzas photo] is the associate Implementation Advisor for UNH IMPACT. She combines a strong academic background in education with over six years of experience in the classroom. Carolyn has taught sixth grade math at Rye Middle School, since 1998. Prior to teaching she was a special education teacher for two years at Rye Middle School. Carolyn has always been interested in curriculum and how it relates to state and national standards and employs a hands-on approach to learning. Last year she had the opportunity to research new math curriculums for her Mathematics team. She is currently assisting her school district in coordinating the implementation of a standards based mathematics curriculum.

Carolyn attended the CESAME Curriculum Trainer Institute for the Connected Mathematics Program. She is an ongoing resource for her districts mathematics teachers. Carolyn is a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) as well as the National League of Middle Schools (NELMS). Carolyn has attended many recent workshops including: Math and Science at the Middle Level (NELMS), Math Education Teaching Strategies (UNH, MST Summer Course), and Making Math Work for At-Risk Students. She has also presented workshops in her district to assist new teachers and the value of rubrics as an assessment tool.

Eleanor Abrams

[abrams photo] is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Education at the University of New Hampshire. Her research and teaching interests in science and technology reflect her experiences as a field biologist and as a K-12 educator. Some of Dr. Abrams' latest research projects include how students learn about the nature of the scientific process and knowledge through project-based curricula. She also develops curriculum where students work on authentic research projects, often with scientists. One such example is GLOBE (Global Learning to Benefit the Environment). In this project, K-12 students monitor the environmental health of their local area and send the results to other schools and scientists via the World Wide Web (WWW). Her recent publications include "Talking and Doing Science " Important Elements in a Teaching-For-Understanding Approach" in Teaching Science for Understanding (Mintzes, et al, Eds. 1998) and "Can We Be Scientists Too? Secondary Studentsı Perceptions of Scientific Research From Project-Based Classrooms" in Journal of Science Education and Technology (with Moss, D. and J.R. Kull, 1998). Dr. Abrams is the 1998 recipient of UNHıs Hortense Cavis Shepard Professorship awarded to an outstanding assistant professor.

Christopher F. Bauer

[bauer photo] is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of New Hampshire and is the 1992 recipient of the University's Jean Brierley teaching award. His research interests address college-level science instruction ­ student misconceptions, student attitudes about learning and courses, discovery-based college chemistry curricula, and faculty beliefs and practice. He has also designed and presented many workshops for elementary and secondary teachers, has been involved as a senior staff instructor for two major National Science Foundation teacher/school development projects in New Hampshire, and is involved in the development of the NH State Science Frameworks and Assessment. Prof. Bauer is also currently a member of the Newmarket School Board. Earlier in his career he did research in environmental analytical chemistry.

Kelly J. Black

[black photo] is an Associate Professor of Mathematics. He received his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from Brown University in 1992. He did his post-doctoral work in the Center for Research in Scientific Computing at North Carolina State University. Dr. Black has served as the project director for several NSF sponsored grants including work on engineering and science based modules for the first-year calculus students. He has also directed projects for a combined calculus and physics course at the University of New Hampshire as well as an integrated linear algebra, ordinary differential equations, and multi-variate calculus curriculum. Dr. Black has an ongoing interest in curriculum development that reinforces closer ties between the mathematics and science curricula. He also has an interest in furthering the vital outreach activities of the University of New Hampshire's Land Grant mission.

Karen J. Graham

[graham photo] is an Associate Professor of Mathematics. She received her Ph.D. in Mathematics Education from UNH in 1986. She taught mathematics in Pine Plains NY prior to beginning work on her doctorate and taught at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI prior to joining the faculty at UNH. Dr. Graham directs the department's Master of Science for Teacher (MST) program. Her professional interests include the teaching and learning of calculus, mathematics education reform based research, and mathematics teacher development. Dr. Graham has served as the project director of many state and federally funded projects including the NSF-funded UNH Leadership Network for Mathematics Teachers Grades 5-12. She has presented numerous workshops at local, state, regional, and national conferences. In addition she has served as a documentation consultant on several national research projects designed to explore mathematics education reform efforts, the QUASAR (Quantitative Understanding: Amplifying Student Achievement and Reasoning) Project, the R3M (Recognizing and Recording Reform in Mathematics Education) Project, and the CCH Evaluation and Documentation Project.

Dawn C. Meredith

[meredith photo] is an Associate Professor of Physics. While she received her Ph.D. in Physics in 1987 at Caltech with thesis work on Quantum Chaos, her current research interest is in physics education. She is currently working with Prof. Kelly Black in Mathematics on developing and assessing a freshman level course that integrates calculus, physics and active learning. She has also developed introductory physics laboratory activities that enhance active learning, used informal writing-to-learn strategies in these same courses, and has offered a course for graduate students and physics educators on Issues in Teaching and Learning Physics. These are all part of her ongoing interest in creating physics courses, particularly introductory courses, that promote deeper conceptual understanding, development of problem solving skills, and self-awareness of the student.