Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC) and the Kansas City Kansas 500 Public School District form the Advancing Teaching Opportunities of Math and Science (ATOMS) partnership. The partnership is increasing the efficacy of science and math teaching by gaining an increased understanding of the needs of high school teachers through the creation of new needs-assessment tools for teacher professional development. Ten faculty members from KCKCC's Division of Engineering, Mathematics, and Sciences, representing the fields of biology, chemistry, engineering, environmental science, mathematics and the physical sciences, are serving as mentors to high school teachers. Community College faculty and teachers are working to increase teacher content knowledge, build knowledge of effective technology use in the curriculum and build skills for teachers to become more engaging to students in the areas of math and science. This structured Higher education - K12 institutionalized partnership is providing insight into the professional development concerns of math and science high school teachers in urban schools that increase student achievement in the areas of math and science. The ATOMS partnership is joined by other local educational entities and community groups interested in STEM education.
