PRESENTATION TO THE FULL COUNCIL (post session 1 09/28)

• Two motions (see below in red) were presented to the full council and were passed unanimously. 

• Suggestions from the Council:

  • The name "FFP" might be somewhat confusing. It was suggested that a "tagline" be added to the workshop title so that the audience would be clear that the workshop was intended to address issues of diversity in physics.

     

BRAINSTORMING (session 1 09/28/07) 

• IDEA: Workshop title: “ Designing the future faces of physics”
• IDEA: The workshop should be student oriented, but hopefully attractive to faculty members who want to address recruitment of underrepresented populations
• IDEA: The 'skeleton' of the workshop could address the following:
  • Education/Awareness/Enlightenment 
  • Engagement (activities, games that incorporate case studies to acheive personal involvment)
  • Empowerment (suggestions and ideas for each individual participants to take back sto their own institutions and programs)
  • Eternal Effect (a change IN the individual after having gone through the thought process--this would be the goal of learning--the internalization of the education/awareness )
• IDEA: The ‘curriculum’ of the workshop should include challenges, games, competitions and problem solving as part of the ‘engagement’ portion of the program. We hope that all zone councilors will consider being the conduit for bringing this idea to every zone by facilitating a 60-75 minute workshop. The SPS national office provide a set of materials (including handouts, discussion materials and suggested activities) for every zone and challenge materials for each chapter.(**MOTION)
  • Chapter groups who participate in the workshop would form teams to 'compete' in som fun and interactive game-type problem solving activity
  • The game might be some kind of “figure it out” for the demographics--i.e. graphs or charts of data with clues about trends displayed. The aim would be to elicit discussion about pre-concieved notions students have regarding diversity isues
  • These activities will include a multilevel competition aimed at engaging as many students as possible in this dialogue process(**MOTION) which is the journey toward a larger event to be held at the Sigma Pi Sigma Congress 2008. This multilevel competition will include prizes to be handed out for chapter teams who attend the workshop at a zone level meeting, as well as a chapter level competition. The winners of the chapter level competition will have their submissions showcased at the Congress 08.
     
  • The activity will be designed in a "problem solving style" with diversity being part of the solution
  • The activity will be desinged so that it also motivates and makes us aware of our responsibility as scientists in society with regard to the issue of diversity in the field

PROPOSED STRUCTURE OF THE "DESIGN THE FUTURE FACES OF PHYSICS" WORKSHOP

• Some kind of handout for everyone who attends - eg, a button, or a bookmark or a pen or something that says "FFP design star". We need some catchy logo for this.

• Every person who attends the workshop will be enetered in a lottery to get help with travel to Congress 08
• The workshop opening: it would be great to have some sort of video/ppt welcome to the future faces of physics stems from the history of physicists in the past… maybe do a quick - past present future –

OTHER ITEMS OF ACTION IN CARRYING OUT THE YEAR'S THEME OF "FFP"

• Comm. B strongly encourages that one of the invited speakers to the Congress 2008 be a person who would address the issues of diversity for the theme Future Faces of Physics

Other comments:

• Survey not really a good idea (Rachel Ivie)

• Address : "why should we care?" (why it is important to PHysics --- see the NAS report)

• The workshop should emphasize "social component" of science in keeping with the goal of having these zone level workshops culiminate in an event at the Congress 08-- where we focus on the citizen scientist

• The workshop will get across the point that as professionals, we must look at gender diversity, racial diversity, cultural diversity among scientists in order to deal with the scientific problems we face today.