Six members of the MSMS administration, faculty, and staff recently returned from the National Consortium of Secondary STEM Schools (NCSSS) Professional Conference in Boston, Massachusetts.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) focused schools from all over the nation converged in the Back Bay district of Boston to share ideas, get to know one another, and attend presentations from professionals from all over the world.
MSMS was a founding member of NCSSS when it was created in 1988. The mission of the organization is the establishment of a forum through which specialized secondary schools focused on STEM can exchange information and ideas.
More than 100 schools across the country are NCSSS schools, and several of were on hand at the conference.
Beyond networking and presentations, attendees also had the chance to tour the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, and Google’s Cambridge Office.
“The trip to Google was fascinating,” said MSMS Coordinator for Public Relations, Wade Leonard. “So much of Google’s philosophy is built around encouraging collaboration. So instead of a normal break room, they essentially have a gigantic coffee bar in the center of their operation. It’s a really big space where employees can relax, talk, play games, and basically change the world.”
The conference was attended by MSMS Executive Director, Dr. Germain McConnell; MSMS Director for Academic Affairs, Kelly Brown, MSMS mathematics teacher Lauren Zarandona; MSMS mathematics teacher Shae Koenigsberger; MSMS chemistry teacher, Dr. Elizabeth Morgan; and MSMS Coordinator for Public and Alumni Relations, Wade Leonard.
Koenigsberger, Leonard, and Zarandona also presented at the conference.
While in Boston, the MSMS delegation also organized a reception for MSMS alumni who live in the Boston area. With the help of MSMS alumnus Kenneth Fang (2010), about a dozen MSMS alumni gathered at the historic Tennis and Racquet Club to meet up with their fellow Blue Waves.