Welcome to the Science and Math Education Center
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We are a library and a planetarium... and conduct educational outreach for you! We serve students, faculty, area teachers with a plethora of K-16 physical science, biological science, and math content books, activity kits, professional materials, literature, 2016 Events and Educational Outreach Activities and |
Come Tour the Spring Night Sky on Tuesday, June 6,
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MARCH 30 - Video recording coming soon!!
The Science and Math Education Center (SMEC) is all about well... education in the sciences and mathematics! We operate a STEM - science, technology, engineering, and math educational library and planetarium. Our library has books, but also activity and project kits and ideas! The staff in SMEC keeps busy obtaining, classifying, and cataloging new resource acquisitions and discarding dated materials. We help students and area teachers to research and find needed resources for background and lesson plans. We listen to your collection development suggestions - so put in a request. We listen to and work with our SMEC Advisory Committee members to conduct educational outreach from Sí Se Puede to presenting at individual schools such as Sacred Heart School. Our planetarium has a regular schedule of planetarium presentations every other Saturday and nearly every Thursday. We also take requests. For more visit our planetarium webpage.
We have a dedicated crew of SMEC volunteers and if you would like to spend time with us, just drop by and find out more! Our volunteers help in the library and planetarium. Volunteers re-shelve books and help to create resource cards and design new kits. With volunteer help, we have made Kansas invertebrate fossil, natural resources, and rock cycle sets. We have an archeological set for check-out as well with early people's trash - from pottery shards to spent projectile points - and more modern, 19th/20th century, "trash" including broken dishes and door knobs. SMEC volunteers have helped with collecting from a significant fossil site, follow-up with labeling and photographing this newest vertebrate fossil collection. In particular, these Pennsylvanian age bones of amphibians and reptiles were donated by Naomi Peterson to the Johnston Geology Museum for all to study; someday, a museum director may even create a display of these important fossils. In the planetarium, volunteers have been created scripts and shows for live planetarium presentations. Read on to learn more of what we do and who we are...
Our Purpose
The Emporia State University Science and Mathematics Education Center (SMEC) serves students, faculty, and area teachers! This STEM Center includes library resources, planetarium programs, and educational outreach. We are committed to the improvement of pre-service and in-service preparation for teaching. These services include dissemination of curriculum materials, hands-on outreach activities, staff development, research within school districts, state-wide research, and science and mathematics curriculum development.
SMEC is supported financially with funding from donations as well as the Departments of Biology, Mathematics, and Physical Sciences as well as the The Teachers College. Our resource center is open to the ESU community as well as the greater Emporia and surrounding communities* for your use. While we are not funded by the main library, our 10,000 available items complement the University Libraries & Archives collection. This win-win situation means our resources can be searched in the Center and by using the Kellogg on-line catalog.
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How to use our facilities:
- If you are an ESU student, staff, or faculty, then services are free to you!
- If you are not currently associated with ESU, obtain a Kansas Resident Card to check out our resources. The KRC is available at ESU White Library circulation desk (see campus map for White Library or WL location). What do you need to bring? A Kansas drivers license or official Kansas photo id card and $20.00 per year. Thanks for supporting us!!
- Graphing Calculators now require a driver's license or a passport to check out for everyone!!!
Hours, Location, & Contact
| Hours: | Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm Wednesdays open til 9 pm & by appointment |
Mail: | Emporia State University One Kellogg Circle Campus Box 4030 Emporia, KS 66801-5415 |
| Location: | Science Hall 177 | Phone: Email: |
620-341-5636 scimathc@emporia.edu |
Our Staff
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Spring 2017
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SMEC Director Susan Aber, PhD (620.341.5636) Lecturer, Earth Science, Emporia State University |
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Graduate Student Assistant, SMEC, Biology and Physical Science Research Coordinator Adegboyega Jolayemi |
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Student Assistant, Planetarium, Operator & Presenter; Custom Show Designer & Star Gazing Coordinator Courtney Barger Undergraduate, BSE Candidate, Physical Science, Emporia State University |
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Student Assistant, SMEC Resource Coordinator and Cataloger Samantha Myrick |
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Student Assistant, SMEC & Planetarium, Astronomy Research Coordinator Stephanie Whittet |
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Student Assistant, SMEC & Planetarium, Earth Science Research Coordinator Melinda Dome |
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Student Assistant, SMEC & Planetarium, Advertising & Social Media Derrick Stockton |
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Graduate Student, Planetarium Operator & Presenter Bryan Longwell Graduate, MS Candidate, Earth Science Emporia State University |
From the past...
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Spring 2016
Pictures were loaded and now have disappeared. We are expecting them to return sometime soon...
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Image Left - Back row, left to right: Bryan Longwell; Sarah Noller; Les Parks; Susie Aber; Madison Galliano
Front row left to right: Courtney Barger; Rhyan Sawyer; Megan Sprague; Samantha Myrick.
Image Right - left to right: Rhyan Sawyer; Lizeth Magana; Bob Everoski (volunteer); Andy Kuhn (volunteer).
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Fall Semester 2015
Image left: Back row, left to right: Madison Galliano; Bryan Longwell; Andy Kuhn (volunteer); Rhyan Sawyer; Lizeth Magana; Megan Sprague; Jon Vopata (volunteer); Janet (Phy.Sci. student secretary).
Samantha Myrick; Susie Aber, Director.
Front row, left to right: Les Parks; Ginger Tabares (Phy.Sci. Administrative Assistant); Shelby Williams (Phy.Sci. student secretary); Lauren Miller (Phy.Sci. student secretary); Courtney Barger.
Image center: Samantha Myrick. Image right: Sarah Noller. Nick Ramsey not pictured.
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Spring 2015
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Spring Semester 2015
Back row, left to right: Lizeth Magana; Rhyan Sawyer; Susie Aber, Director.
Front row: Chris Hayen; Bryan Longwell; Sarah Noller. Christian Lollar is also on staff and is pictured below.
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Fall 2014
October-December 2014 - left to right> Chris Hayen, Lizeth Magana, Rhyan Sawyer,
Alyssa Floro, Bryan Longwell
September 2014 - Sarah Noller, Christian Lollar, Bryan Longwell
SMEC and Planetarium Staff for Fall 2013-Spring 2014
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| Image left: October 2013-May 2014 | Image right: August-October 2013 |
Latest update 4/24/2017.