Cherie Wyatt
April 2010

I have some great news to share with you! Although we were saddened to hear last fall that NSTA was unable to complete plans for a regional conference in Denver in 2011, we are overjoyed that they have resumed efforts to bring NSTA to Denver! Put December 12-14, 2013 on your calendar! There will be opportunities for involvement on many levels and we’ll let you know about those as they arise. A deep and heartfelt gratitude is extended to Mary Gromko, NSTA Director of Coordination and Supervision of Science Teaching, and Bev Devore-Wedding, Director of District XIV, for their tenacity and political skill to bring NSTA back to Denver and Colorado!

Now that we have finished CSAP season and spring break, we are in the final push for the year, filled with inventory updates, requisitions, finals, and the difficult task of keeping kids engaged when the temperatures outside are warm. At least we are lucky enough to have science as our content to keep them hooked on learning! Take a deep breath and dig in to finish well! I remember at the last NSTA Regional Conference in Denver when John Sepich stated in his opening remarks what hardly any of us dare to think. He encouraged us to remember that we are the ones who are responsible for how well our students perform, not the custodians, or cooks, or school secretaries. Of course we know those support people are vital to our schools functioning comfortably and we know that they are included in our recognition for fear of hurting someone’s feelings, but John was right, they are not teachers and you need to remember and be encouraged by that private pride in each of your students’ successes. I hope that you will find those successes in August when CSAP scores are released and that you find a special way to celebrate the fruit of your hard work.

Finally, I would like to bring professional involvement to your attention again. This is the CAST election issue and we need for you to vote! Please follow the voting instructions found with the ballot. It may seem silly to ask you to vote for offices that are unopposed but these candidates need your support. I am hopeful that an election soon in the future will have ballots with at least 2 candidates for each office. I am grateful for the ways in which my service as president has stretched me and provided additional professional tools for me that I didn’t even know I needed! As a “behind-the-scenes” type of person, I never pictured myself as president of anything but am very glad to have had the opportunity to be president of CAST. If you are considering running for any office in the future, let us know so we can contact you when we build the ballot next January or when your position of interest opens up. Unfortunately, none of us attended a school with mind reading classes so we won’t know of your interest unless you tell us! All board members need to attend quarterly business meetings, held on Saturdays, with the exception of the November meeting which is held at the Colorado Science Conference. We pay mileage and if you travel over 100 miles, will reimburse dinner and a hotel for the night before. The meetings begin at 9 with a networking opportunity over a light breakfast, wonderful lunches are always provided (Elnore is a wonderful cook!) and we end at about 1 or 2 in the afternoon. Directors (three directors for each region) work together to award the mini-grants for their region, contact members for renewal purposes, and sponsor a workshop with financial support from CAST. Don’t worry if you need ideas or presenters for a workshop, we have resources to help, and you would have two other directors to share the work! Please contact Courtney Willis at courtney.willis@unco.edu or myself at cwyatt@kiowaschool.org if you are interested in running for an office in the future. Finally, keep looking for your special ideas that you can present at the 2010 Colorado Science Conference! It won’t be long until the call for presentations goes out! I am looking forward to seeing all of you there!

Best wishes, Cherie