Siena hosted 10 area high school teachers this week for a three-day paid workshop on programming, physics, and data analysis.
Siena/IRIS-HEP Coding Camp was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) as part of its support for the Institute for Research and Innovation in Software for High Energy Physics (IRIS-HEP), a multi-institutional grant that is headquartered at the Princeton Institute for Computational Science and Engineering. Matt Bellis, Ph.D., professor of physics, coordinated the workshop.
“The NSF grant will help develop the software tools necessary for the next generation of high-energy physics experiments, which will be producing even more data than they do now,” said Bellis. “Additionally, it funds efforts to educate the current and the next-generation of researchers about best-practices in scientific computing, which is the basis for these types of workshops they organize for K-12 teachers.”
Bellis said Siena “is fortunate to have the contacts and reputation that make us an appealing location for these workshops,” but is concerned that cuts to scientific research at the federal level will jeopardize such efforts.
“I’m not sure people realize that these cuts directly affect not just large-scale experiments like the Large Hadron Collider, but these types of workforce development that take place in local communities,” he said.
News10 stopped by Nobel Hall to check out the workshop.
Jessica Handler teaches mathematics at Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester, VT. This is the second workshop she has attended with Bellis.
“When I learned he was organizing a workshop on Python, I was thrilled,” said Handler. “As a high school mathematics and statistics teacher, I recognize how widely used Python is, and having a foundational understanding of it is beneficial not only for me but also for my students. This workshop has been invaluable—it provided the structured starting point I needed to begin learning and eventually implementing Python in my lessons.”
“I cannot emphasize enough what an incredible presenter Professor Bellis is—engaging, passionate, and extremely knowledgeable. I’m genuinely envious of his students who have the opportunity to learn from him regularly.”
Shenendehowa High School (Clifton Park, N.Y.) physics teacher Michael Tymeson said he appreciated the enthusiasm that Bellis and the instructors showed for physics and programming.
“While both topics can be intimidating, they made Python and particle physics accessible,” he said. “I hope to do the same in my classroom. I will certainly find time to implement Python coding into my curriculum as it is not only a scientific tool, but also promotes an analytical way of thinking and solving problems.”
