Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

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Photos and story by James Hill

PORTLAND, Ore. – Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for two-year colleges, has selected Portland Community College to participate in its 13-month project, "Preparing Tomorrow’s Science and Mathematics Teachers: the Community College Response."PCC will partner with Green River Community College in Washington to focus on science and mathematics.The two colleges will integrate technology into a teaching program that will focus on experiences for elementary school teachers for a pre-professional degree. It will consist of a full year of science and mathematics offerings to keep new teachers on the cutting edge of technology and curriculum. PCC is one of 18 colleges from around the country to take part in program, which attracted a total of 65 institutions from around the country."We will be able to enhance math and science offerings for prospective teachers and prepare an advising guide that will tell them what courses to take at PCC,"said Ilga Ross, PCC math instructor. "And the project will give them information that they can then transfer to a four-year institution to aid them in completing their studies."The 13-month grant will pay for travel and mentoring costs connected with attendance in conferences for PCC staff. The overall goal of Phi Theta Kappa’s project is to have the 18 national partners enhance the role of community colleges to prepare future K-12 science, mathematics, and technology teachers that will help meet the country’s teacher shortage. It also highlights the roles that community colleges have in recruiting, preparing and providing future teachers who have a clear understanding of today’s technological needs in the classroom.