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The Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute (LRRI) will collaborate with the Albuquerque Public Schools (APS), and New Mexico Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (NM MESA) Inc. to run the Lovelace Science Academy. This project will link LRRI scientists with 6th, 7th, and 8th graders from two APS middle schools with the goal of developing scientific literacy and critical thinking skills in students who would otherwise have few opportunities to engage in challenging, inquiry-based scientific investigations.
LRRI scientists, with the help of a curriculum developer, will develop curricula and related materials for inquiry-based, hands-on science activities around the subjects of lung function and structure, respiratory infections, effects of smoking, and air pollution. These activities will be designed to strengthen the students' abilities to use mathematics and technology to support science learning.
The Lovelace Science Academy is composed of two student centered activities, a summer science day camp and an after-school program. During the summer, 20 students from each grade level will participate in a grade appropriate three-week summer science day camp. During the fall of the school year following their participation in the summer program, students will work with LRRI scientists and NM MESA staff to prepare a presentation on the topic areas covered during the summer camp. In the spring, students will undertake investigations that will reflect their new awareness of how the respiratory health issues they have studied are relevant in their own lives. Both the fall presentations and the results of the spring investigations will culminate in awards ceremonies meant to interest family members and the larger community in respiratory health topics.
Once students have completed their Academy experience, they will be expected to participate in NM MESA, a program they can begin in middle school and continue throughout high school. Each year, all NM MESA students participate in: 12 tutoring sessions, one field trip, one community give-back project, and a math/science competition.
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