Verde Evolution Education Program

The Verde Evolution Education Teacher Fellows Program was founded in 2020 with the goal of developing age-appropriate scientific pedagogy for K-12 students in evolutionary biology. This collaboration establishes a bridge between Boston University evolutionary biology faculty, graduate students, and Rhode Island public school science teachers.

The 2025 program will bring together Rhode Island high school teachers and Boston University Evolutionary Biology faculty. Verde Teacher Fellows will attend a day-long workshop that includes presentations, discussions, and lab tours. Teacher Fellows will learn fundamentals of evolutionary science and cutting-edge research. The workshop training will be applied to develop evolution curricula and lesson plans to be implemented by teachers during the school year.

Following the workshop, Verde Teacher Fellows will continue to receive pedagogical support and mentorship from BU faculty during the school year. Participating teachers will receive a stipend and a Certificate of Participation documenting workshop activities to allow them to petition for PLUs with their school districts.

The interaction between practicing evolutionary biologists, educators, and K-12 students will advance evolutionary science literacy and ensure students receive accurate information based in evidence.

The Evolution Workshop 2025 will be held July 18th, 2025.

Deadline to Apply: June 1, 2025

Verde Evolutionary Science Teacher Fellows are expected to be fully engaged in working to fulfill the Verde Evolution Education Program’s goal of achieving excellence in K-12 instruction in evolutionary science. Participants will acknowledge their commitment to achieving these goals by recognizing the expectations of the Verde Evolution Education Program.

Fellows recognize that they will develop knowledge of concepts, empirical studies, areas of current research, and instructional materials presented during on-campus activities. Fellows further recognize their commitment and responsibility to develop educational tools to construct related lesson plans to be adopted in the classroom.

Teacher requirements:

· High school biology teacher in good standing and teaching evolutionary biology in the classroom

· Engage fully with the Verde Evolution Education Program’s goal of achieving excellence in K-12 instruction in evolutionary science

· Participate in the workshop on July 18, 2025 from 9:00 am-5:00 pm

· Prepare a lesson plan on Why Evolution is Fact, and a second lesson plan on a topic of your choice

· Implement lessons in the classroom and communicate with BU Faculty and or graduate students to develop lesson plans during the academic year

· Conduct pre- and post-assessments of your students’ understanding of evolutionary science

Benefits:

· Earn a stipend of $1000 to attend the summer workshop and commit to improving instruction in evolutionary biology throughout the school year. The stipend is paid in allotments of $700 and $300, the latter at the completion of a lesson plan during the school year.

· Learn current concepts and studies in evolutionary biology that will inform and enrich your classroom instruction

· Engage with BU Evolutionary Biology faculty and graduate students through presentations, seminar discussions. and lab exercises

· Become a BU affiliate with access to library resources

· Receive mentoring and advising on developing and implementing lessons and facilitating interaction with students from faculty inside and outside of classrooms throughout the academic year. Apply Now

Teacher Fellows for the 2024 – 2025 Academic Year:

• Kristoff Forman
• Elizabeth Letourneau
• Julie Pankowicz
• Samantha Vann
• Kathryn Washington
• Christopher Wren

After earning a teaching degree and a master’s degree in Biology from Boston University, Jim Verde taught biology at a Rhode Island community college for 38 years, motivated by a passion for helping students and an insatiable curiosity about the natural world.

Today, Verde uses his expansive knowledge of biology, botany, and mycology to care for his grapevines at Verde Vineyards in Moswansicut Lake, RI. Verde Vineyards was born out of a passion for the Earth’s bounty, and employs traditional wine making techniques to produce a wine reminiscent of the southern Rhone Valley.