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Program gave teachers summer education
Local educators use fellowship to improve teaching abilities
By KAREN KABILING
Instead of teaching summer school or taking time off this summer, Homestead High School teacher Welton Kwong worked at Compaq, putting together a problem-solving handbook for facilitators. Hence, he didn't give up his teaching career.
Kwong was one of 111 motivated Bay Area teachers who took part in the Industry Initiatives for Science and Math Education Summer Fellowship Program, in which teachers work side by side with scientists, engineers and managers to complete projects in more than 40 high-tech companies, universities and government agencies.
From designing a corporate website to developing a handbook, each educator took part in an eight-week paid fellowship position to discover real-world applications for the subjects they teach, learning more about requirements of today's workforce and becoming familiar with the latest technology used at Silicon Valley corporations.
Fellows, peer coaches, mentors, coordinators and contributors gathered at the Compaq Computer Corporation in Cupertino for the "End of Summer Celebration" for the summer fellowship program on Aug. 9.
Through featured presentations, displays and face-to-face interaction, teachers and industry mentors shared their accomplishments during the event.
Kwong, a second-year fellow, said working at Compaq helped him in many ways.
Last summer during his fellowship at Intel, his tasks included cleaning up the company database, but at Compaq, working with his mentor helped him develop better problem solving and leadership skills. "It was more goal oriented," he said.
As department chairman for English Language Development at Homestead High School, Kwong said he feels more comfortable with the improved skills he has learned, which would help him in the long run when working in teams or groups.
Kwong added he now has the knowledge and experience to answer students' questions about what it is like to be an engineer or a businessperson--something he wasn't able to do before participating in the fellowship.
"I like to keep growing," Kwong said. "I like to keep moving forward. [The fellowship] gives me a different perspective. It made me think about what I want to do--maybe get another master's."
The program, a nonprofit organization based in Cupertino, was founded 16 years ago by a small group of companies, which included Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Lockheed and Pacific Bell.
Since then, the Summer Fellowship Program has grown with more than 100 participating companies and has provided more than 1,300 summer fellowships for teachers.
According to the program's statistics, teachers who participate in a fellowship are two times more likely to stay in the teaching profession.
Barbara Rodrigues, the program's education director, said the program stresses variety to help teachers hone skills in the high-tech industry.
"[Participants] can see what the company does," Rodrigues said. "It enables the teachers to see what's going on."
It has become a goal of the organization to keep qualified teachers in the classroom.
The initiative program partnered with the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group three years ago, which provides about 90 percent of the recruiting sponsors.
Larry Carr, the director of education for the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group, said his company committed to the program because of the pivotal role teachers play.
"Teachers understand what it is like to be in the workforce," Carr said.
The program is intimately involved with teachers, because they have a direct link with children.
This summer was Heather Haas' first initiative fellowship, and she worked with the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
"It grounded me more as a well-rounded person," Haas said. "It made me love teaching that much more."
With the knowledge of water she learned, she plans to teach her first-grade students about the water treatment process.
"I think this program is absolutely amazing," she said. "It reminds them why they are teaching. It connects [the participants] to the world."
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Cupertino, California Since 1947
