Meaghan Gass also received an award from the Michigan Alliance for Outdoor and Environmental Education earlier in 2023.
Michigan Sea Grant is pleased to announce that the Michigan Science Teachers Association (MSTA) has chosen our MSU Extension educator Meaghan Gass as its 2024 Informal Science Educator of the Year. Meaghan serves in the Saginaw Bay region focusing on Great Lakes literacy, community resilience, and place-based and natural resources education.
Meaghan is a leader in the field of place-based and environmental education who is always looking for innovative ways to engage educators and students to excite them to learn more about the Great Lakes — while increasing awareness, stewardship, and informed-decision making.
Meaghan also is a co-leader for the regional Center for Great Lakes Literacy, which is a Sea Grant education network and partnership that promotes Great Lakes literacy among an engaged community of educators, scientists, residents, and students by encouraging hands-on experiences and basin-wide stewardship, and by providing educational resources and networking opportunities. Meaghan supports educators through professional learning opportunities, including the Lake Huron Place-based Education Summer Teacher Institute and Dow Innovation Teacher Fellowship. In addition, she regularly partners with 4-H for youth development camps such as the Saginaw Bay 4-H Fish Camp.
MSTA is a state chapter of the National Science Teachers Association, one of the largest science organizations of its kind in the United States. Its mission is to stimulate, support, and provide leadership for the improvement of science education throughout Michigan.
Meaghan will receive her award during a banquet held during MSTA’s annual conference on March 2, 2024. Congratulations Meaghan!
