*** 9552856 Davison Fifteen of Allegheny County's 43 school districts, including 53 schools and over 1,020 teachers, have been collaboratively developing a strategy for systematically reforming science education in their elementary schools. To support this activity, Allegheny Schools Science Education and Technology (ASSET) Inc., a local non-profit consortium of bus iness, education, and community leaders committed to reforming science education, was initiated in 1993 through the leadership of Miles Inc., (now called Bayer Inc.) a Pittsburgh-based company with major businesses in health care, chemicals, and imaging technologies. The plan for reform includes: the development of a comprehensive curriculum for each district based on FOSS, STC, and Insights units; the creation of a regional materials support center; the selection and preparation of coalition resource teachers (one per 200 teachers) responsible with scientists for inservice and the support of teachers district-wide; the development of lead teachers in each building; regular classroom teac her training; the creation and use of student assessments; connections to the informal science centers, the improvement of preservice education; and organized community involvement. To accomplish this wide-range of activities, ASSET has brought together an impressive set of partners. The Carnegie Science Center, industry, private and corporate f oundations and the Allegheny Intermediate Unit are collaborating in the development and support of the Materials Center. The Learning Research and Development Center (LRDC) of the University of Pittsburgh will support the use of student authentic assessment. The Carnegie Science Center will coordinate the National Aviary, the Pittsburgh Zoo, Bee chwood Farms Nature Preserve, and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, as they offer learning opportunities for teachers and students. Bayer Inc. will coordinate the training of professional scientists who will work with lead teachers and will take the lead in developing the commun ity outreach and communication effort. The school districts will be responsible for the education and support of all teachers, the selection and support of the instructional materials, and the design for the institutionalization of the project. The cost sharing for the project will be 70% of the NSF portion. ***
