Institute to be held at USF Tampa from July 30 – August 3
TAMPA, Fla. (July 25, 2018) –More than 50 K-12 educators from across the country, including 10 from school districts around Tampa Bay, are coming to the University of South Florida to receive free training and resources from national experts designed to inspire their students to become the next generation of inventors and problem solvers.
The 2018 National Summer Teacher Institute on Innovation, STEM and Intellectual Property, held at the USF Tampa campus from July 30 – Aug. 3, is presented by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in partnership with USF’s College of Education and the David C. Anchin Center for the Advancement of Teaching. The multi-day training opportunity combines experiential training tools, practices and project-based learning models to help K-12 educators increase their knowledge of making, inventing and innovation.
The central focus of this year's Institute is on the creation and protection of intellectual property — including inventions, knowledge discovery, creative ideas and expressions of the human mind that may have commercial value and are protectable under patent, trademark, copyright or trade secret laws.
As part of this year’s program, USF and Occam Technology Group will host workshops for educators about the “Internet of Things” – the connection of the internet with everyday objects, allowing them to transmit data to one another. Through this training, educators will receive resources they can use to host their own in-class demonstrations about the Internet of Things, and to develop curriculum that connects that demonstration with learning outcomes related to innovation and entrepreneurship.
As the nation’s fifth leading public university in generating United States utility patents, USF’s culture of innovation and research continues to inspire developments that have incredible impact on the regional economy and the world. That culture, combined with USF’s College of Education, make the university the perfect host for this year’s Institute, which will provide educators the tools they need to make a lasting imprint on tomorrow’s leaders.
"When we look at the schools of the future, technology will continue to be an increasingly important part of teaching and learning, and equipping teachers with these skills is critical to preparing students to tackle the challenges and innovations of tomorrow,” said Robert C. Knoeppel, dean of the USF College of Education. “The USF College of Education is thrilled and honored to partner with the United States Patent and Trademark Office to host the National Summer Teacher Institute and to fulfill our mission of serving the needs of all educators."
Presentation speakers and hands-on workshop instructors will include experts from the USPTO, noted scientists and engineers, entrepreneurs and representatives from other Federal Government agencies and non-profit organizations. Teachers participating in the Summer Institute will be introduced to teacher-friendly materials designed to enhance student learning and inspire the next generation of inventors and problem solvers.
Teachers from Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Manatee and Hernando are expected to participate.
About the United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is the federal agency for granting
patents and registering trademarks, fulfilling the Constitutional mandate to "promote
the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to inventors
the exclusive right to their respective discoveries.” Under this system of protection
for inventors and entrepreneurs, American industry has flourished, and the USPTO is
at the cutting edge of America’s technological progress. Learn more here.