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Grant Development and Writing
Terra Science and Education offers grant development and writing services. Our team includes experienced grant writers and editors who have been PI’s, Co-Pi’s, and program directors on over $15 million dollars of funded projects from the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Education, New York State, and multiple private foundations.

We specialize in grants focusing on science, engineering, and education. Terra has experience in project development, management, and evaluation and can provide these services to you. We are flexible and can work within your budget to address your grant needs. Terra charges are based on a negotiated hourly rate. Terra Science and Education will work with you to:

  • develop your proposal based on a project design provided by your agency.
  • develop a proposal budget based on a project design provided by your organization.
  • be part of the grant proposal as a community organization in order to bring several school districts or community organizations together, if needed.
  • develop any other documents required for submission.
  • create management and evaluation plans if needed.
  • perform all copy editing for the proposal and related documents.
  • submit the proposal to the granting organization on your behalf.

Contact Dr. Richard Beal ([email protected]) to set up a meeting to discuss the details of your needs.

Here are few examples of grants developed and submitted by Terra:

Project/Proposal Title: Terra Maker Valley
Source of Support: CNY Works
PI’s: Fehmi Damkaci, Rick Beal, Mary Eileen Wood, Jake O’Connell
Total Award Amount: $25,177
Total Award Period Covered: Summer 2021
Partners: Syracuse City School District, Syracuse Academy of Science, Tillies Touch, Northside Learning
Status: Funded
Description: Terra Maker Valley will promote understanding of science as a way of knowing about the world and stewardship as a way for individuals to improve the environment. Terra Maker Valley will engage students in programs that emphasize urban ecology and urban ecosystems that are relevant to their lives, a critical key for cultivating and sustaining interest in science during the middle school years and beyond. Using inquiry-based and informal experiential learning approaches, Terra Maker Valley will enhance the abilities of students to comprehend and communicate science and impact their local urban communities through maker space activities leading to long-term environmental stewardship. Terra Maker Valley will be delivered through five, one-week long camp sessions starting in July 2021. Camps will meet in a variety of settings, including local city parks and at community organizations. Ongoing school year activities will expose students at schools and community organizations to Maker activities. Terra Maker Valley will address local environmental issues of pollution and water quality with global links to climate change and sustainability and be delivered by Terra STEM Scholars which will include 4 youth mentors. This project will draw students from two Central New York urban districts, Syracuse City School District (SCSD) and Science Academies of New York (SANY) Charter Schools, and from multiple educational nonprofits serving students and their families.

Project/Proposal Title: Terra Maker Valley
Source of Support: National Science Foundation
PI’s: Fehmi Damkaci, Rick Beal, Mary Eileen Wood
Total Award Amount: $999,673
Total Award Period Covered: Summer 2021-2026
Partners: Syracuse City School District, Syracuse Academy of Science, Tillies Touch, Boys and Girls Clubs of Syracuse
Status: Not Funded
Description: Terra Maker Valley is an Innovations in Development project type of NSF’s AISL Program. Terra Maker Valley will promote understanding of science as a way of knowing about the world and stewardship as a way for individuals to improve the environment. Terra Maker Valley will engage students in programs that emphasize urban ecology and urban ecosystems that are relevant to their lives, a critical key for cultivating and sustaining interest in science during the middle school years and beyond. Using inquiry-based and informal experiential learning approaches, Terra Maker Valley will enhance the abilities of students to comprehend and communicate science and impact their local urban communities through maker space activities leading to long-term environmental stewardship. Terra Maker Valley will be delivered through five, one-week long camp sessions starting in July 2021. Camps will meet in a variety of settings, including local city parks and at community organizations. Ongoing school year activities will expose students at schools and community organizations to Maker activities. Terra Maker Valley will address local environmental issues of pollution and water quality with global links to climate change and sustainability and be delivered by Terra STEM Scholars. This project will draw students from two Central New York urban districts, Syracuse City School District (SCSD) and Science Academies of New York (SANY) Charter Schools, and from multiple educational nonprofits serving students and their families.

Project/Proposal Title: Ecological Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering for Teachers
Source of Support: NSF Research Experiences for Teachers (RET)
PI’s: Hui Zhang, Marianne Hromalik, Fehmi Damkaci, Rick Beal
Total Award Amount: $599,248
Total Award Period Covered: 2021-2024
Partners: SUNY Oswego, East Syracuse-Minoa School District, ESM STEM Learning Ecosystem, Village of Mi-noa, Syracuse City School District, Syracuse Academy of Science, Higher Ed. Insight Inc.
Status; Not Funded
Description: Our project will extend and expand a pilot program in which high school teachers and students participate in environmental, electrical, and computer engineering research projects at an area waste treatment facility. At the present time a voluntary high school STEM initiative is in place between SUNY and our partners at the Cleanwater Educational Research Facility (CERF) located in an existing municipal wastewater treatment facility. Teachers recruited from East Syracuse Minoa STEM Learning Ecosystem will take part in 6 weeks of orientation and in cutting-edge research projects that address energy, resource, and waste management challenges engineering (Gasification Systems, Distillation Systems, Composting, Constructed Wetlands, Remote Monitoring, etc.) during the summer months. Teachers will design STEM educational modules based on their research experiences and with the help of master teachers, ultimately leading to student engagement by students in STEM classes.

Project/Proposal Title: Teacher Ecosystems for STEM Enrichment for all Students
Source of Support: Department of Education – SEED
PI’s: Fehmi Damkaci, Rick Beal, Tolga Hayali, Donna DeSiato
Total Award Amount: $5,426,428
Total Award Period Covered: 2020-2023
Partners: East Syracuse-Minoa School District, ESM STEM Learning Ecosystem, Village of Minoa, Syracuse City School District, Syracuse Academy of Science, Higher Ed. Insight Inc., Syracuse Museum of Science and Technol-ogy, Rosamond Gifford Zoo, Technology Alliance of Central New York, Teachstone Inc., Partners for Education and Business, TIES.
Status: Not Funded
Description: 1. Creating Eco STEM Collaborations by leveraging the East Syracuse-Minoa STEM Learning Ecosystem’s net-work of formal/informal educational partners of which SANY is a member to create collaborative programming using an Urban Advantage model to enhance teacher professional development in research methods, STEM les-sons and activities for K-12 students, and computer coding for student instruction. 2. Establishing a Teacher Support System of instructional coaches and technology coordinators utilizing Teach-stone CLASS assessment methodology and Eco STEM Collaborations PD.

Project/Proposal Title: NY Ecosystem Consortium: STEM Experiences Through Public/Private Partnerships
Source of Support: U.S. Department of Education’s EIR program
PI’s: Donna DeSiato, Jan Morrison, Marc Siciliano, Rick Beal
Total Award Amount: $4,000,000
Total Award Period Covered: 2020-2025
Partners: East Syracuse-Minoa School District, ESM STEM Learning Ecosystem, Village of Minoa, Syracuse City School District, Syracuse Academy of Science, TIES, Marcellus School District, North Country STEM Network, Greater Southern Tier STEM Learning Network, PEAR Institute
Status: Not Funded
Description: East Syracuse-Minoa will serve as the Lead Applicant for the US Department of Education - Education Innovation and Research (EIR) – Early-phase grant program. The program provides funding to create, develop, implement, replicate, or take to scale entrepreneurial, evidence-based, field-initiated innovations to improve student achievement and attainment for high need students; and rigorously evaluate such innovations. The EIR program is designed to generate and validate solutions to persistent education challenges and to support the expansion of those solutions to serve substantially larger numbers of students.

Project/Proposal Title: Making Invent-Story
Source of Support: NSF AISL
PI’s: Fehmi Damkaci, Rick Beal, Mary Eileen Wood
Total Subaward Amount: $331,957
Total Award Period Covered: 2019-2024
Partners: Rochester Museum and Science Center, Phelps Library’s STEAM Lab Makerspace in Phelps, NY
Status: Not Funded
Description: Making Invent-Story is an innovative informal STEM education model that connects makerspaces and science and engineering fairs to create accessible and mutually-reinforcing experiences that deepen young people’s understanding of STEM principles and their application and inspire pursuit of STEM careers.

Terra Science and Education created the Terra STEM Scholars in Schools Program to connect STEM experts with schools in their areas.

The goal is to increase STEM engagement in schools by helping teachers to identify the experts in their region and to find educational community service opportunities for STEM experts. Terra will offer this service free for both schools and STEM experts so that it can take off the stress on finding a good match and scheduling.

Terra will provide annual reports to the companies or universities if they announce our program and allow their employees to volunteer. The report may include how many of their employees are involved and how many hours of community service is provided by their employees. You may use the information for your annual company reports, community impact reports, or grant submissions.

The Terra STEM Scholars are local college faculty, STEM practitioners, and graduate students who are eager to interact with school students and their teachers. Scholars can share their expertise through interactive lectures, classroom activities, field experiences, tours, or job shadowing. Extended mentoring opportunities can also be explored in select cases.

Here are the few CNY Schools which are registered to take advantage of our free service for them to engage their students with a STEM Scholar/expert: Bishop Grimes Jr/Sr. High School, Syracuse Academy of Science High School, Onondaga Nation School, East Syracuse Minao high School, Marcellus Senior High School, Utica Academy of Science Middle and High Schools.

School Registration
School participation is FREE! If you, as a classroom teacher, are interested in participating in our program and would like invite one of our volunteer STEM Scholars, please send an email to Dr. Rick Beal ([email protected]) with the following information:

School Name, Age/Grade level, STEM area of interest, possible specific topics (if there is), month of the year when the Scholar is expected, and any other related information to help the Scholar better prepare.

STEM Scholar/Expert Registration
Terra Science and Education is looking for STEM experts in the Central New York Region to participate in the Terra STEM Scholars Program. Participation is fun and easy! Terra will help you design a student engagement experience that is right for you and for the classroom. Terra will also act as an intermediary between you and schools to protect your valuable time. It is also a great community service using your expertise for the young adults and can be year after year with little effort from you.

Scholars can expect one volunteer presentation per year which should serve as your community service. For additional visit requests in an academic year, the Scholar may choose to volunteer their time or Terra will pay them $75 per additional school visit. You may choose how many engagements you would like to do in a year. Terra will place you within 30 miles of your home or work address.

If you have further questions before making a commitment, please email Dr. Rick Beal ([email protected]).

If you are ready to volunteer please Register here!

Terra Science and Education is happy to announce the Terra Traveling STEM Show. In this program Terra provides STEM educational programing to summer camps organized by area schools and community groups. Terra Traveling STEM Shows can be 1 to 5 days in length and we can fit our programming to meet your STEM content and scheduling needs.

Terra Traveling STEM Shows are presented by the Terra STEM Scholars. These college faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, and STEM practitioners are ready to bring STEM to kids.

One week of programing costs approximately $7,000. Contact our program coordinator for more information or fill out this Interest Form.

Contact
Dr. Richard Beal
[email protected]
1-315-422-2902

Overview
Terra Science and Education provides Teacher and School Leader Professional Development Programming. Terra is recognized as an official Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) credit provider by the New York State Department of Education.

Terra professional development is rigorous, current, relevant and appropriate for the professionals in the target audience. Terra continually updates and validates its activities based on emerging research, identified best practices, and student feedback. Terra specializes in professional development focused on education, educational administration, and numerous STEM topics. We can work with you to deliver the professional development experience that you need!

Professional Development Resources
Terra Science and Education building at 835 West Genesee Street in Syracuse, NY contains several meeting rooms. We also rent programming space from area hotels or from partnering school districts. Our biggest strength is in the experience of our staff:

MEET OUR STAFF

Contract Instructors
Terra Science and Education has a vast network of instructors who specialize in education, educational administration, and various STEM topics. Instructors go through a rigorous process of evaluation before approval. Instructors must have a least one of the following:
  1. A Masters or Doctorate degree in education or content related to the training
  2. New York State Teachers Certification
  3. 10 years of experience in informal education/outreach/college extension
  4. The role of NYS Principal or Trainer for a NYS approved school district

Post Event Evaluation
Events are evaluated using a standardized evaluation form which was developed based on the work of a former collaborator with a doctorate in Instructional Design, Design, and Evaluation from Syracuse University (see evaluation form). The results are synthesized by Terra Science and Education staff and shared with the presenter. The workshop/activity is improved using the results and additional feedback from Terra staff after review. Terra also requires presenters to develop a short self-reflective paragraph after the event. Workshops are periodically monitored by Terra staff and feedback is given to the presenter.

Records
Terra retains verification of completion (this may be electronic and/or paper records) and copies of all program and promotional materials used for each CTLE activity, for not less than eight years from the date of completion of the activity. These records are subject to review by the Department, and the sponsor agrees to make these records available to NYSED or its designee during regular business hours at a specified location.

Terra’s educational programming is open to local public and private schools.

Terra Science and Education offers new school development support such as writing charter school proposals and providing guidance on educational, financial, and facility needs for a succesful implementation based on succeful models. Our team includes school developers, charter school proposal writers, charter school leaders, new school program implementers, and experienced in the process of establishing new schools, including budgeting, board development, staff recruitment, and facility selection and renovation.

We are flexible and can work within your budget to address your grant needs. Terra charges are based on a negotiated hourly rate. We may offer all or any of the following services based on your need. Terra Science and Education will work with you:

  • to develop your proposal based on a project design provided by your team;
  • to develop a proposed school budget based on a project design provided by your organization;
  • to develop any other required documents needed for submission;
  • to create management and evaluation plans if needed;
  • to guide your team by sharing best practices in the field to help you develop a better school program
  • to submit the proposal;
  • to prepare you for the board interview process;
  • to provide school management and board meeting professional development.

Contact Dr. Richard Beal at [email protected] to set up a meeting to discuss the details of your needs.

Contact Us

Address: 835 West Genesee St, Syracuse NY 13204

Email: [email protected]

Phone/Fax: +1(315) 422-2902

501.C.3: A non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of education.

 2020 Guidestar Platinum Medal Recipient for its transparency .

Copyright © Terra Science and Education 2020