Glenville, WV - Dr. Kevin Evans, Associate Professor Chemistry, at Glenville State College will be attending the HSTA fall meeting on September 14 & 15 at Braxton County High School. The Health Sciences and Technology Academy, HSTA, of West Virginia University is a 9th-12th grade science and math program. Dr. Evans (left) will be making a presentation on GSC's NASA Funded program. The purpose of his presentation will be to recruit high school science teachers for GSC's Summer Institute.

Glenville State College is in its second year of a three year grant from NASA for a statewide research initiative to study the invasive Tree-of-Heaven, Ailanthus altissima. This fast growing tree ranks as one of the most significant threats to timberland in West Virginia. Dr. Evans is the NASA Program Facilitator for GSC. The NASA program consists of three parts, the Summer Institute for high school teachers, the Research Academy for high school students, and undergraduate research by GSC students. The Summer Institute and the Research Academy are designed to partner teachers and students to do statewide research such as where the Tree-of-Heaven is and is not located, looking for chemical changes, and DNA profiles of the soil and plants.

Dr. Evans hopes to recruit up to twenty secondary science teachers for the Summer Institute, and up to thirty high school students for the Research Academy. For more information or to receive an application, contact Dr. Kevin L. Evans at (304) 462-7361 extension 7304.