MESA Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Fall Middle/High School New Advisor Training

MESA: A historical perspective 1968 Mechanical engineering Berkeley professor Wilbur Somerton faces the problem of being unable to fill industry recruiters' requests for African American and Hispanic engineering graduates. Consequently Somerton and Bill Somerville, then director of Berkeley's Equal Opportunity Program, determined that educationally disadvantaged K-12 students from diverse backgrounds needed an academic support system to encourage interest and foster talent in engineering, mathematics, and science Sommerville, Somerton, and a group of dedicated educators and staff from throughout the campus launched Berkeley's Mathematics Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) Program to prepare students to complete baccalaureate degrees in engineering and science. Twenty- five students from Oakland Technical High School were selected as the first participants. The first MESA advisor was Mary Perry Smith.

MESA: A historical perspective 1980 Sixteen MESA Centers were operating MESA Programs in seventy-five California high schools involving over 2,000 students 2002 MESA USA, a partnership of MESA programs from eight states, pilot MESA programs in Missouri, Nevada, and New York. The current partnering states include: Arizona, California, Colorado, Maryland, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington California MESA serves 21,207 students at 22 MESA Schools Program Centers (K-12), 33 MESA Community College Program Centers, and 13 MESA Engineering Program Centers (4 year Universities).

California MESA Regions

MESA Schools UC Irvine 1999The UCI MESA Schools Program is born. A partnership is formed with Compton Unified School District and Anaheim Union High School District. 2005/06 Elementary School Pilot (Lincoln Drew) 2005/06 King Drew Magnet High School Joins The UCI MESA Family 2006/07 Official launch of Elementary Schools MESA at six school sites 2007/08 Garden Grove High School Joins The UCI MESA Family 2009/10 UCI MESA Welcomes Lynwood Unified School District 2011/12 UCI MESA Welcomes Lake Middle School, Markham Middle School, Micro Enterprise Charter Academy, Walton Intermediate, and Bolsa Grande High School

The MESA Way  Since its inception, approaches to projects have relied heavily on ingenuity of the students. No instructions on how to build a project are ever given, just objectives, boundaries (rules), time constraints, and assessment via competitions. This is the “MESA Way”

MESA PARTICIPANTS Who is eligible to participate in MESA? Educationally disadvantaged students are eligible for the program. The criteria for educationally disadvantaged include factors such as economic status, educational environment, or family/home circumstances. How many students does MESA serve? MESA serves 30 students per grade level. The goal is for each middle/junior high school will have 90 participants, whereas each high school will have 120 students.

MESA Model UC Irvine MSP Models:  MESA Saturday Institute (MSI) - Meets with students over 18 Saturday sessions with weekly Academic Excellence Workshops  MESA Period - Offered during the regularly scheduled school day.  MESA After School Preparation Program (MAPP)- Meets with students a before/after school a minimum of 3 hours per week.

Components of MESA Individual Academic Plans (IAP). IAP’s help students and parents monitor individual student progress toward college. Career and college exploration. Workshops and field trips present various college and career options. SAT Preparation. Students participate in a year long interactive course designed to provide test taking strategies and extensive practice on both the verbal and mathematics sections of the SAT exam. College Application and Financial Aid Assistance. Workshops and individual guidance in completing college applications and financial aid forms. Academic Excellence Workshops. Math and science curriculum designed to enhance critical thinking skills and increase students’ ability to work cooperatively. Undergraduate Role Models. Trained UCI undergraduates implement program activities and provide academic advising and mentoring. MESA Days. Participation in hands-on math and science competitions reinforce California content standards. Winners of local competitions advance to regional and national levels.

Components of MESA Incentive Awards and Graduation Recognition. Outstanding student achievement, leadership, and educational milestones are recognized. Teacher professional development opportunities. Institutes are offered for MESA Advisors featuring hands-on curriculum and new techniques to teach math and science. Parent leadership development. Parents learn how to become effective advocates for their children’s academic success. “Engineering Your Future” Closing Ceremony. The culmination of the MESA year includes Robotics, College Poster Board, Rubik’s Cube, and Rube Goldberg Competitions, as well as college/career workshops, and personal strengths assessment.

The MESA Year Please refer to your MESA calendar:  The MESA school year can be divided into three quarters with three different emphases. Sponge Activities - Fall MESA Day Projects - Winter Closing Ceremony Activities – Spring

MESA’s Fall Quarter  MESA’s focus from October through November is to expose students to a variety of projects in order to develop their ability to design, explore, and build from their imagination: Hands-on engineering and science sponge activities Academic Excellence Workshops (AEW) Team Building  High School MESA students will have an opportunity to participate in the following field trip in the fall: USC College Day SHPE Pre-College Conference

MESA’s Fall Quarter Activities to Focus by week and MSI (MESA Saturday Institute)  Your first MSI or week should focus on Enrollment & Team Building Activities  Remaining fall MSI’s and weeks should emphasize Sponge Activities.

MESA’s Winter Quarter  MESA’s focus from November through February/March is to prepare students for the upcoming MESA Day competitions: MESA Day Projects Preparing for the Mathematics competitions Academic Excellence Workshops  MESA students will have an opportunity to participate in the following field trip in the winter: Preliminary MESA Day Regional MESA Day

MESA’s Winter Quarter Activities to Focus by week and MSI  Your first MSI or week should introduce the MESA Day Projects.  Remaining winter MSI’s and weeks should emphasize MESA Day Projects.

MESA’s Spring Quarter  MESA’s focus from March through May is to expand our students’ awareness of the college process: Robotics Competition Rube Goldberg Competition Rubik’s Cube Challenge STEM Awareness Academic Excellence Workshops  MESA students will have an opportunity to participate in the following field trip in the spring: MESA’s Closing Ceremony: “Engineering the Future”

MESA Spring Quarter Activities to Focus by week and MSI  Your first MSI or week should introduce the Closing Ceremony Contests.  Remaining fall MSI’s and weeks should emphasize AEW and Closing Ceremony Contests.

A typical MESA After-School Preparation Program (MAPP) Week First Day 5 min.Students Sign In/Announcements 55 min.Academic Excellence Workshop Second Day 5 min.Students Sign In/Announcements 10 minTeam Building Activity 15 minPreparation & Intro to Project 60 min.Project Building & Judging 20 min.MESA Reports & Discussion 10 min.Clean Up & Final Announcements 3 hrs. Total

A typical MESA Saturday Institute (MSI) Session 10 min.Students Sign In/Announcements 1 hr.Academic Excellence Workshop (AEW) 20 min.Team Building Activity 15 minPreparation & Intro to Project 20 min.Class Break 80 min.Project Building & Judging 20 min.MESA Reports & Discussion 10 min.Clean Up 5 min.Final announcements 4 hrs Total

Typical Outline of a Sponge Activity/Short Term Project (2-3 hours)  Introduction to Project (Discussion Questions) min.  Preparing to Build (Go over project, groups) 5-10 min.  Build and Self-Test Project min.  Test/Judge Project (Competition) min.  Analysis of Project (Discussion Questions) min.  Journal Writing (MESA Reports) min.  Clean Up 5-10 min.  If time permits: Modify, Retest, and Revisit Discussion Items min.