Youth Education Program

RAC Youth Education Program Advisory Committee: Bj. Madsen (VE5FX) - Chairman - RAC MidWest Director Ken Pulfer (VE3PU) - Member - RAC Vice President Bill Rothwell (VE3FGW) - Treasurer - RAC Treasurer Daniel Lamoureux (VE2KA) - Member - RAC Quebec Director Wilf Mulder (VE7OHM) - Member - Vernon, BC Neil Carleton (VE3NCE) - Member - Teacher David Cochrane (VE9QED) - Member - Retired Teacher Dawn MacKay (VE1MAK) - Secretary - RAC Secretary Bill Gillis (VE1WG) - ex officio member

ARRL’s “Big Project”

MISSION STATEMENT: RAC wishes to foster a mutually beneficial relationship between young people and Amateur Radio

Rationale: The continued existence of Amateur Radio in Canada depends heavily on bringing young people into the service. Canada needs to have more young people who choose careers in the sciences and technologies, Making Amateur Radio a part of Canadian youths’ education and development will offer to them opportunities to make more informed choices about interest and career decisions.

SCOPE: Phase I Identify one school in each RAC region to act as a ‘pilot project’. –This school has a radio-based project running. –The teacher has an Amateur Radio license. –A local club will support the project.

RAC will provide to the school: Access to all of RAC’s resources. Assistance with program content Assistance from the local club Recognition –In TCA –In teachers’ literature –In the media

SCOPE: Phase II Solicit new schools that have not been involved in Phase I. Demonstrate success achieved in Phase I. –To teachers’ organizations –To the Amateur Radio community –To senior educational administrators –To the general public –At teachers’ conferences

SCOPE: Phase III Continue with the work in Phase II and –begin to create curriculum material lesson plans specific to the use of radio in school –across the curriculum –specific to age and grade

FUNDING Phase I funding: –primarily from RAC with assistance from clubs Subsequent funding requirements: –from external sources corporations in the industry corporations interested in youth education educational grant sources Industry Canada

2003 RAC Annual Board of Directors Meeting The Advisory Committee Report was presented and ….. –Accepted unanimously –given a budget of $ for the first year –Bj. Madsen appointed as chair of the new committee mandate to form a working committee. get the program started with the new school year.

Is born

RAC Youth Education Program committee: Bj. Madsen (VE5FX) - chairman Neil Cameron (VE3NCE) - member Mark Richardson (VA3OBO) - secretary Wilf Mulder (VE7OHM) - member* Bill Gillis (VE1WG) - ex-officio member

Dr. Bob Thirsk (VA3CSA) - medical doctor - Canadian Astronaut Dr. Thirsk has agreed to serve as our official spokesperson “Amateur Radio is a great way for students and teachers to reach out and bring the world and space into the classroom”

InterNet WEBsite: Opening page with message from Dr. Thirsk Biography of Dr. Thirsk Overview of the RAC Youth Education Program Details about the program An application form A list of the project schools Information on how viewers can help out Links to RAC, ARRL, ARISS How to contact the committee …. Info Centre …. Youth Education

Holy Cross School - Winnipeg, MB Grade school there is not an Amateur on staff sponsored by Adam Romanchuk (VE4SN) of the Winnipeg Senior Citizens’ ARC will use SWL as a part of their social studies, geography and science classes

R. Tait McKenzie Public School - Almonte, ON Kindergarten to grade six elementary school program run by Neil Carleton (VE3NCE0 in grades 5 & 6 will be using Amateur Radio and SWL as part of the curricular & extra curricular work sponsored by the Almonte Radio Repeater League’s VP, Bob Clermont (VE3AKV)

Walter Murray Collegiate Institute - Saskatoon SK A large high school with an existing (unused) Amateur Radio station already in place Program run by Brian Walter (VE5DR) Intend to incorporate radio theory and practicality in grades science areas.

Lester B. Pearson High School - Burlington ON A high school with an existing very successful Amateur Radio program in place program is run by Mark Richardson (VA3OBO), a physics teacher. Mark ran a very successful program last year, graduating a number of new hams. Will continue to use Amateur Radio in physics class. Will continue to offer extra curricular help with the pursuit of an Amateur Radio license. See page 28, Sep/Oct issue of TCA (The Pearson Project)

Chestermere Lake Middle School - nr Calgary, AB A grade school sponsored by (past RAC president) Ken Oelke (VE6AFO) and QCWS intend to use Amateur Radio as a link between the school and the world.

The Challenge: From the Almonte Radio Repeater League to Canadian Clubs.

Where do we go from here? Continue to bring schools into Phase I –our goal is to have one school in each of the seven RAC regions

Where do we go from here? Keep contact with the schools and their sponsoring clubs –help them to obtain radio equipment –help them with resource material –help them to include elements of radio into their curriculum

Where do we go from here? Promote the participating schools –through articles in TCA –through inclusion on the WEBsite –to the educational community –to local, provincial & national media

Where do we go from here? Fund raising –Begin to solicit the participation of potential funding sources.

Thank you for your interest We hope that you will lend your support the RAC Youth Education Program.