This proposal requests partial funding to support the participation of plenary speakers, college and high school educators, a diverse group of students (graduate, undergraduate, high school) and the general public in an Evolution Symposium and a Teaching Evolution Workshop. The symposium will bring together leading researchers in evolutionary biology with Midwestern educators and students to broaden their exposure to current topics in evolutionary biology and to assist in teaching evolution in the classroom. Speakers will present evidence for evolution from disciplines ranging from genetics to anatomy to paleontology. Three poster sessions open to all participants will further increase interaction between our presenters, established faculty, students and the public. The symposium will conclude with a workshop for educators.
Broader impacts of this workshop are enormous. The University of Nebraska at Kearney faces a constant struggle to teach evolution to its own students, to future educators, and to the general public. The list of invited speakers includes some of the nation's most persuasive lecturers on evolution (Michael Purugganan, New York University; Shannon Williamson, J. Craig Venter Institute; Rob Knight, University of Colorado; Scott Gilbert, Swarthmore College). The associated workshop for teachers will provide expert advice on how to teach topics ranging from fossil evidence for evolution to molecular evidence for evolution to natural selection. Teachers and students will have abundant opportunities to talk directly with all participants.
