Studies have found that the green jobs market is growing primarily through the integration of sustainability into existing jobs. As a result, sustainability-minded businesses are seeking employees with skills sets that extend beyond traditional technical training to help their businesses become more sustainable.

Through a National Science Foundation funded grant, we are offering a four-day summer workshop to interdisciplinary teaching teams. The goal is to help teams integrate sustainability and the sustainable skills desired by employers into their curriculum through problem-based learning communities. Ideally, teams will include one teacher from a STEM technical field and one that teaches courses in related instruction. For example, a community college engineering instructor paired with a technical writing instructor or a middle school math teacher paired with a language arts teacher. Larger teams or individuals will be considered if space is available.

Participants will receive training in sustainability, problem-based learning, and interdisciplinary learning communities. We will also facilitate partnerships with local businesses to help you create authentic problems for your students. Stipends ($400), lunch, snacks, teaching resources, and clock hours will be provided. Space is limited and preference will be given to teams with students in STEM technical pipelines from middle school through community college.

The workshop will be held at Spokane Falls Community College in Spokane, WA, June 19-22, 2017. A more detailed agenda will follow.

Interested faculty teams should contact Scott Rollins (scott.rollins[at]sfcc.spokane.edu) or Adriana Bishop (adriana.bishop[at]sfcc.spokane.edu). Please include the names and contact information for all individuals on your team, institutional affiliations, and teaching disciplines.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DUE-1400699. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.