An Albuquerque science teacher is getting a share of $100,000 in grants to purchase equipment for research that will be conducted by students at his lab at Native American Community Academy in Albuquerque.
Sergio Torres received $5,000 to purchase equipment to provide a hands-on experience for his juniors and seniors.
“A lot of our students come from various tribes or pueblos, and they are now being exposed to a high-tech type of analysis,” Torres told KOB 4 News. "So that will really put us into a field where we can do research and continue working for our common goals to increase research across more diverse students.”
Torres is one of 52 teachers across the nation recognized by Society of Science, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. The grants are awarded through the organization’s STEM Research Grants program, which, according to its website, encourages hands-on science learning in middle and high school classrooms.
“Every year, we look forward to celebrating educators from around the country who are building the capacity of their STEM classrooms,” Maya Ajmera, president and CEO of Society for Science and Executive Publisher of Science News, told the Society for Science website. “This program is building inclusive classrooms that make robust, hands-on education and careers in science and engineering possible for all students.”
According to Society for Science, priority is given to educators to teach students from “low-income communities, including students of underrepresented and underserved backgrounds.”
Torres has spent most of his career as a scientist and hopes to encourage students “so that they can grow and hopefully motivate them to consider their experience with what career paths they undertake,” he told KOB 4 News.
