Archive: Around Town

Four staff members from the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) and its Museum of the Earth have been named “Scientists-in- Residence” for Fall Creek Elementary School. The four scientists are Dr. Carlyn Buckler, Dr. Richard Kissel, Chris Besemer, M.S., and Sara Auer, M.S.

The purpose of the program is to provide all students in grades K-5 with equal access to a scientist to answer their questions and get them more involved in their science classes. A concerned PTA member who noticed that science fairs were not enough to involve all students first approached the Museum of the Earth with the idea for this program. The school had previously done an “Artist-in-Residence” program that proved helpful in getting students excited about art, so it was suggested that the idea be adapted to aid the science program.

"We just finished our first week with the students and it was a great success," stated Dr. Richard Kissel. "It's a fantastic opportunity to be able to work with the staff and students at Fall Creek Elementary. As a child, I was fascinated by fossils and other aspects of science, but my experience was limited to books and museum visits. While those resources were (and are still) tremendous for young minds, meeting with actual scientists is an opportunity that I would have loved. Our working with these students can really help foster a lifelong interest in the natural sciences."

The scientists will visit the school throughout the month of May to teach each grade about a different geological time period. Kindergarten students will be learning about dinosaurs, the first and second grades will be studying life during the ice age, grades three and four will be learning about the ancient seas, and fifth graders will be mentoring the first and second graders.

PRI scientists will visit each classroom two times per week to help teach and mentor the students via various science projects. When the scientists are not at the school, students will be working to put together a final research project that will be finished by the end of the school year and which will culminate everything they learned by working with the Scientist in Residence.

The Scientist in Residence program was made possible through a $3,000 grant from the Ithaca Public Education Initiative (IPEI) and $1,000 from the Fall Creek Elementary School PTA.

The Paleontological Research Institution and its Museum of the Earth located in Ithaca, NY is a nationally-ranked, university-affiliated natural history museum, and an emerging national leader in Earth system change education, paleontological research, the study of the fossil record, and the Earth sciences.

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