Teacher Liaison is Featured Speaker at TedxPune 2013 Conference

In November, Space Foundation Teacher Liaison Vandana Suryawanshi was one of a dozen prominent speakers at TedxPune 2013, a conference highlighting Indian men and women becoming change agents, inventors and idea champions. The conference was held in Pune, India, and featured a variety of speaker topics including technology, education, science and many others.

Suryawanshi, who spoke on “Moving Beyond Boundaries,” is a middle school educator at Vidya Valley School in Maharashtra, India. She was selected for the Space Foundation’s 2012 Flight of Teacher Liaisons and was the first international teacher selected in the program’s history. She has been teaching biology, earth science and general science for 20 years.

About Teacher Liaisons
Teacher Liaisons use Space Foundation-provided training and resources to integrate space principles into the classroom and may be any PreK-20 educator or other professional or informal educator in the PreK-20 arena. Teacher Liaisons tend to be Master Teachers who want to inspire the next generation of students to pursue and excel in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), but membership is open to educators in all disciplines, ranging from science and math to language arts, physical education, special education or the arts. Applicants need only to demonstrate that they effectively integrate space education within their curriculum.

Space Foundation Teacher Liaisons enjoy numerous benefits, privileges and activities, such as special recognition during the 30th Space Symposium, to be held at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA, May 19-22, 2014.

To read more details about the Teacher Liaison program, click here.

About TED and TEDx
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, which started as a conference in California 26 years ago. It has grown to support world-changing ideas with many initiatives. In the spirit of Ideas Worth Spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. 

Pictured: The panel of speakers featured at the TEDxPune 2013 conference in November. Space Foundation Teacher Liaison Vandana Suryawanshi is shown fourth from right. Photo credit: Sakal Times.

This article is part of Space Watch: January 2014 (Volume: 13, Issue: 1).