The University of Alabama Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) Site: Engaging and Training Alabama STEM Teachers in Sensing Technologies is a 7-week, paid ($8000) summer professional development opportunity for 10 middle school (grades 5 to 9) science and/or math teachers from west central Alabama.
Teachers will do engineering research in laboratories on the UA campus under the mentorship of an engineering faculty mentor. The primary goal of this program is for teachers to gain authentic experience in what engineers do (how experiments are designed, how data is collected, how data is analyzed, how to present data, and how to use data to answer a question).
Available research projects will use sensing and measurement technologies to explore both physiological and environmental monitoring. This common theme on sensing is selected because knowing how to measure and analyze physical features of materials, devices, tissues, and/or the environment is critical to answering many engineering research questions.
The faculty mentors supporting this program are:
- Dr. Todd Freeborn (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Dr. Chris Crawford (Computer Science)
- Dr. Armen Amirkhanian (Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering)
- Dr. Amanda Koh (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
- Dr. Aijun Song (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Dr. Vishesh Vikas (Mechanical Engineering)
In addition to research, teachers will participate in weekly workshops to learn more broadly about engineering, sensors/programming, and receive support to translate their research experiences into activities for their classrooms.
At the end of the summer, teachers will present the results of their research at a summer poster symposium. This will give teachers a chance to share their work with other teachers, faculty, and students. Specific examples of the engineering research projects that teachers have supported in previous years and their posters are available here.
After the summer, teachers will be invited into a community of practice to collaborate and support each other (and receive support from our RET team) as they work towards implementing their lessons in their classrooms and integrate their lessons learned through these experiences.
Important Dates
- Application Deadline: March 15, 2026
- Notification Deadline: April 15, 2026
- Tentative Program Dates: June 8 to July 24
Contacts
For more information about this program, contact the following site coordinators:
Application:
Complete the online application by the program deadline for full consideration. We reserve the right to make offers to promising applications before the deadline. The application requires completing a personal statement, specific program questions, and uploading a letter of recommendation/support from an administrator at your school (e.g. principal, assistant/vice principal, etc.).
This letter of recommendation should comment on your teaching (e.g. subjects taught, years at school, support of extra-curricular STEM clubs/activities) and state that if selected you have your schools support for the program activiteis (e.g. translating research back to classroom, inviting faculty to classrooms).
Eligibility Criteria:
Applicants must:
- U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or permanent residents of the United States
- Currently teach STEM in grades 5-9 in the west central Alabama area
- Have completed at least 1 full year of teaching with commitment to teach for at least the next 3 years
Professional Development Activities
During the program, teachers will:
- Contribute to engineering research projects focused on physiological or environment sensing working with faculty and graduate students in the College of Engineering
- Attend weekly professional development workshops on engineering, sensors/programming, and education/curriculum
- Participate in weekly peer share sessions with the teacher cohort
- Demonstrate their educational activities to the teacher cohort
- Present research results at an end of summer poster symposium
Financial Support
Participating teachers will receive:
- $8000 stipend for their participation in the program (stipends will be pro-rated based on attendance and participation)
- $2000 for materials/supplies to support developed lessons or revisions to lessons
- Paid on-campus housing for up to 2 teachers who have to commute long-distance ( > 60 miles) to campus
Expectations
Participant must:
- Commit 35 hours per week (roughly 9AM to 4PM, Monday to Friday) to activities during the programs 7-weeks
- Attend all professional development workshops and seminars during summer
- Develop new (or revise existing) lessons/activities for your classroom that use engineering thinking/concepts
- Present their summer research process and results to their cohort at end of program
- Commit to launch their educational activities in their classrooms within 1 year of the program and coordinate a visit to their classroom by their faculty mentor