Presentation:
Notes:
Meeting goals:
- Elections: Positions still to be filled – Fundraising team: consolidates funding needs of working groups into a unified budget, manages GoFundMe site
- Logo Design – Submit your logos to the organization
- Status of Coalition structure – need to be institutionalized to obtain funding
- Fundraising site in progress (GoFundMe)
- Working Group updates
Status of coalition structure:
Options for our coalition:
- National organization – chapters at universities and in industry, Similar to the structure of the Association of women Geoscientists (AWG) from which this coalition stemmed
- Non-profit organization – difficult to receive PSU funding, similar structure to national organization
- Options Associated with PSU – Student organization is not inclusive of entire PSU/SC/alum community. Center or institute at PSU? But the opportunity to expand beyond PSU does not exist here
Summer: start filling out paperwork to become national organization – allows us to keep non-students involved. Contact your alma matters. Goal is to grow and contact people across the nation.
Question: larger corporations are able to donate money and get a tax write off if they donate to a nonprofit – can this occur with a national organization?
Fundraising site in progress:
Go fund me – crowdfunding site: coalition wide and for specific working group projects. This will fall under the jobs of the fundraising team (account management). This should not be the only source of funding. “Lets Grow State” is a PSU crowdfunding site – tax deductable
Because the organization has no attached institution, traditional funding sources cannot be used. This semester we will co-host events. Contact the presidents if you want to host.
We should make stickers / paraphernalia
Working group reports:
Diversity and inclusion:
spring events/ short term goals
- Jan 12th mixer – late february mixer hosted by Meteo Department in Walker – last meeting was mostly geosci, the mixers will rotate through departments so more people can be involved
- Mixer- the goal is to create a community between departments and backgrounds
- Highlight a speaker: co-sponsor an event with departments or educational equity to bring a speaker that works on diversity or comes from a diverse background to give a talk, share their science, background. Send nominees to joanmarie@psu.edu
- “Faces of Science” – Section in We Are for Science Website – expand what people think a scientist looks like – pictures and an interesting bio to feature on the website. Potential collaborations with WPSU
- EMS writing tutors workshop: “Bringing diversity and inclusion to your careers and professional development” 3/15/17, 6-7pm in 26 Hosler
Long term goals
- Mixers: rotate departments and hosting location, build a community and introduce more people to WAFS. The idea is to have events be self-sustainable and have different depts. Volunteer
- Outreach: Collaborate with science communication group, connect with urban and rural schools, arts fair booth, grange fair (ask a scientist) – reach out to areas that don’t have access to scientists and science tutors
- Big 10 collaborations
Science Policy:
- Need 6 more people to be point people for the 12 schools that will be Big 10 collaborators – plant the seed this semester, distribute information, make it easier to start similar organizations
- Future Big 10 conference for grad students with a focus on networking and opportunities.
- Why big10- connections with department chairs , any graduate student who wants to go to another big10 school can be funded to do that / transfer credits/ do research there.
- Hold off from grouping your other alma matters until we have a logo / it is legal. Legalize science.
- Email ACF6@psu.edu if you are interested
- March 1: seminar and Q&A with Richard Alley (testified for congress, went to greenland with US senators) on science communication, policy, and outreach.
- Science policy news updates- Facebook, weekly emails, twitter
- Upcoming elections 2017 – PA supreme, superior, commonwealth court, district attorney, school board, jury commissioner and many more. Vote in PA this November. The last day to register before the primary is April 17. Last day to register before November election is Nov. 10. If you are thinking about running, there is a candidate school in town this weekend.
- Voter Registrations: https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/pages/VoterRegistrationApplication.aspx
- Phone Banking – science policy and advocacy go hand in hand. Educate your representatives. Friday, there will be a phone banking session from 9-5 in Deike location TBA. Drop in, phone numbers of reps will be posted, give a call to representatives of your choice, there will be pamphlets with background on the candidates. Stances will be added to the website and sent to the listserve
- Candidate School Registration: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1103672706755&ca=c1a9525f-a20e-4e7e-b201-896230dc868c
- Post local events (e.g. quarry building) on the website, send interested members, understand local environmental policy and politics
PSU government affairs: John Latini, Amanda Whitherspene (?) – Sci policy society will be having a Q&A with these people in April
Also- there is a student member elected to the board of trustees at PSU. A member of this group should run
Next meeting for Sci policy: Feb. 23 at 5pm
Instead of targeting politicians directly, include contacting lobbying groups – getting in contact with other non-profits (especially with state elections)
Sierra club lobbyist (Noreen), If your friends are lobbyists, set up a visit/talk
Communication and Outreach:
- Goals: listening campaign: reach out to the community- what are they interested in and what are their scientific concerns- Update from Beth – attempting to reach out to centre county – grassroots way to listen to people’s concerns via round table discussions at churches, community groups, clubs. Utilize staff to make connections with community organizations. Most staff does not work in town.
- Resources for teachers outside of state college – resources and interaction (similar to shake rattle rocks, but grad students go to classrooms to work with teachers) – contact and collaborate with College of Education.
- Ask a scientist event – set up tables at arts fest, farm show, panel of people to address concerns – send info on these community events to WAFS
- Richard Alley communication workshop
- Discovery space collaborations: hands on kids museum downtown
- Benner Elementary (Bellefonte): 2:30 – 4pm on Mondays in February
- Wingate Elementary (Bald Eagle): 3:30 -5 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in March
- Discovery space determines the science activity, but people are needed to help run them.
- Next communications and outreach meeting: February 16th, 6pm, Deike 341
- Resource gathering for a sharable database of educational material.
Final discussion:
- WPSU- PBS channel – Mondays – science technology now – spotlight WAFS on monday- contact WPSU – connected to 13 counties in central PA http://video.wpsu.org/show/scitech-now-wpsu-penn-state/
- BMMB/GWIS – voices conference this Saturday – NASA program officer in radiaiton sciences / enviro scientist will be a speaker. Keynote speaker is the science advisor for Breaking Bad – to register, email – $15 to register. Women in STEM week – look at GWIS – 14 life sciences building at 5:30 – make rock candy and watch breaking bad: email rndl20@psu.edu
- Dean of College of EMS- becoming director of NSF funding for all earth sciences. He has 4 more months here- engage the Dean in dialogue about where NSF is going. This is the last time he can talk without conflict of interest. Understand where he plans to put his efforts for the next 4 years – give him the idea that this group exists and is active when he is in DC. Sci policy / communications should work on setting up a seminar with the dean.
If you are interested in anything above, please attend the working group meetings!