Newsletter Articles for Educators

Over 40 teachers from 13 rural Oregon school districts have been learning about bioenergy as part of Oregon State University’s (OSU) Science and Math Investigative Learning Experiences (SMILE) program, and are prepared to take their new knowledge back to the classroom.

Twenty imaginative undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds are exploring ways to create sustainable energy solutions while gaining valuable research experience through the new interdisciplinary Bioenergy Minor established in fall 2012 at Oregon State University (OSU).

Developing future scientists takes dedicated teachers determined to make science fun, rewarding, and challenging. OSU's SMILE program provides teachers with resources to engage students in a variety of after school activities.

Shawn Freitas is on a mission. As the driving force behind Oregon State University's Ecampus bioenergy class, he's determined to take the mystery out of bioenergy and make it relevant for anyone interested in the environment.

Solving future bioenergy needs in Oregon may be a little easier thanks to the innovative efforts of a large group of teenagers concerned about the environment.

Puget Sound area science teachers took part in a day-long energy literacy and bioenergy workshop sponsored by Advanced Hardwood Biofuels Northest designed to give teachers more tools to integrate biofuels into their classroom.

Tapping into environmental awareness and the trending Zombie craze, AHB taught two dozen high school students how relatively simple it is to make biofuel at the annual Teen Conference at Washington State University in Pullman.

For a group of middle school students in the small logging town of Darrington, Washington turning fry grease into biodiesel opened their minds to a much larger picture of energy consumption, jobs, and the future of their community.

Nearly 100 third grade scientists gathered to present their findings to researchers at GreenWood Resources in Westport, Oregon after studying hybrid poplar phenotypes. The field trip was the finale of a genetics unit that began nine weeks earlier at Jackson Elementary School in Hillsboro, Oregon.

Sarah Lane, WSU Extension Energy Intern and member of the AHB Extension team, taught 700 students about different types of energy and the role it plays in their lives.

Twenty-one high school students (mostly 9-10th graders from Corvallis, Newport, and Lebanon, OR areas) participated in the Bioenergy Summer Camp, held at Oregon State University (OSU), July 18-22. The camp blended a series of short energy-related lectures, hands-on activities and a strategy-style board game to cover a wide range of bioenergy topics.

The AHB Extension Team taught students how to make biodiesel and survive the zombie apocalypse at the YMCA's Earth Service Corps (YESC) Environmental Symposium, held at University of Washington on March 24th.

The Bioenergy Carnival provided Latino families with a chance to learn together through hands-on activities and science demonstrations, with the aid of bilingual volunteers. The central theme was energy and the environment. Lessons covered energy efficiency, wind/hydro/solar power, biofuels, wood energy, and food waste for energy.

UW NASA Space Grant invited AHB Extension to teach during this summer’s Science Academy. Cat Gowan created an energy lesson using a zombie apocalypse survival scenario to make renewable energy topics fun and interesting.