Utah State University is collaborating with Eastern Michigan University to create DL Connect: Connecting Underserved Teachers and Students with NSDL Learning Resources and Tools. Workshops are being developed for middle grade teachers and library media specialists to help them integrate NSDL materials into the middle school classroom. Prior to this effort middle school children and teachers were a population segment not being adequately served by NSDL. The importance of helping this group is evident from the numerous studies conducted over several decades pointing to the middle school as the place that large numbers of students begin to lose interest and ability in science and mathematics. The project is having a direct impact on 250 middle schools and a large number of middle school teachers within the service areas of the two universities. Many of these schools are serving impoverished districts including those located in rural, suburban, and Native American tribal areas. In Michigan, approximately 100 schools in the targeted area are failing to meet the mandated adequate yearly progress goals. . Improvements in the mathematics and science areas are being observed.
