ST. LOUIS (May 14, 2007) – Almost two years after its debut, the MySci program received a “What’s Right With The Region” award at the 10th annual FOCUS St. Louis awards celebration on Thursday, May 10 at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

 

Every year the event showcases the successes of individuals and organizations who make the bi-state region a better place to live, work and learn. A total of 20 honorees were recognized. MySci was honored in the “Creating Quality Educational Opportunities” category.

 

“We were thrilled to be recognized in the company of the many other prestigious nominees who are making St. Louis a great place to be,” said Ann McMahon, program director of MySci. “Doing our part, we believe that it is important to interest children in science at a young age using a fun, interactive environment that gets them excited about learning. Our hope is that MySci will be a stepping stone in cultivating the next generation of scientists.”

 

Since its inaugural school year in 2005-06, MySci has reached more than 20,000 people including more than 9,000 students in 461 classrooms of kindergarten through second graders. All schools in the St. Louis area are eligible for the MySci program. One of MySci’s goals is to improve achievement levels for all students. Therefore, two-thirds of MySci’s visits are made to schools with low-achieving student populations.

 

“In our second year, we responded to the community’s growing interest in the program by adding a second Investigation Station during January 2007,” said McMahon.

 

MySci, funded by Monsanto, is a collaborative effort among the following institutions: Washington University in St. Louis, the Saint Louis Science Center, the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo. MySci’s mission is to enhance a sense of wonder and interest in science for children and their teachers. The MySci program gives early elementary students all over St. Louis the chance to study science through inquiry. It provides curriculum books and classroom kits in the topics of plants, animals and the earth. It also includes a visit from the newly designed Investigation Station, a roving vehicle of innovative exhibits and specimens which makes learning through climbing, crawling, seeing, hearing and smelling more exciting than ever. MySci is getting an early start on recruiting the next generation of scientists.

 

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