Join the Master Plant Science Team!
Are you a graduate student or post-doctoral researcher interested in a chance to get involved and trained in K-12 outreach?
Would you like to develop your leadership and facilitation skills and connect with both scientists and K-12 teachers without leaving your desk?
Do you have a handful of hours per week to commit during BOTH the Fall and Spring PlantingScience Sessions?
Consider joining the PlantingScience Master Plant Science Team!
What is the MPST?
PlantingScience facilitates a partnership between scientists, teachers and students. In order to make that partnership flow, each teacher is assigned an MPST member to serve as a scientist liaison. In this role, MPST members facilitate communication between the teacher, the scientists, and the PlantingScience Staff.
Responsibilities:
- Participate in online mentorship training
- Facilitate communication between mentors and the teacher, and vice versa.
- Recruit scientist mentors to mentor student groups.
- Mentor 1-2 student teams and respond to student teams when assigned mentors are called away
- Submit weekly liaison reports on the progress of your teachers’ teams.
- Nominate the best of your teacher’s teams for star project awards.
Benefits:
- Inspire middle and high school students with a new appreciation for plants and science
- Give back to K-12 education and support innovative teachers in their efforts to bring real science to their students
- Gain communication and mentoring experience and skills
- Sponsored benefits by participating scientific societies include free membership and other benefits (see society brochures for details).
- PlantingScience t-shirt
Selection Criteria
MPST members are selected based on:
- Past PlantingScience experience as a mentor and/or past MPST member.
- Evaluation of the writing sample requested in the application, with an emphasis on the applicant's use of an appropriate tone, age-appropriate vocabulary, and adherence to best practices in mentoring.
- Availability of (and eligibility for) sponsorship opportunities within their chosen partnering society.
Master Plant Science Team Sponsoring SocietiesThe following societies offer sponsored positions on the Master Plant Science Team. |
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Botanical Society of America sponsors graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. |
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American Society of Plant Biologists sponsors graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. |
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Canadian Botanical Association/L'Association Botanique du Canada sponsors graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. |
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Ecological Society of America sponsors graduate students only. |
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The American Society of Agronomy/Crop Science Society of America/Soil Science Society of America will sponsor graduate students and post-doctoral researchers who are currently members of one of these societies. |
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The American Phytopathological Society will sponsor 1 graduate student or postdoc. |
Applications for the 22-23 School Year have now closed.
We'll be opening the applications for our 23-24 Master Plant Science Team in March of 2023!
Make sure to drop in then to apply!