NEW PALTZ – The State University of New York at New Paltz will host the 2013 Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) and Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) Mid-Hudson Regional Conference on May 11 from 8:30 – 3 p.m. in the Coykendall Science Building.
This conference is a collaboration between SUNY New Paltz STEP and CSTEP and is open to all STEP and CSTEP programs in the Mid-Hudson Region. Workshops for parents and students will be given by SUNY New Paltz faculty and students, Dutchess Community College faculty, and other local educators.
Principal Baruti Kafeli, Milken National Educator, educational consultant, speaker, and author will be the conference’s keynote speaker. A highly-regarded urban public school educator in New Jersey for over twenty years, Kafele distinguished himself in the classroom and as a principal leading the transformation of four different schools. Kafele is an authority on professional development strategies for motivating Black males and has published four books on the subject. He also conducts professional development workshops for educators, parental engagement seminars, and student empowerment assemblies.
The Mid-Hudson Regional Conference, which was previously held at Dutchess Community College, has now been held at SUNY New Paltz for over four years. This year participants will come from Dutchess Community College CSTEP, Iona College STEP and CSTEP, Mercy College STEP and CSTEP, New York Medical College STEP, and SUNY New Paltz STEP and CSTEP. Participants for this conference will also come from Newburgh’s Century 21 group. Additionally, SUNY New Paltz STEP and CSTEP will continue their collaboration with the Catskill Hudson Area Health and Education Center (CHAHEC), particularly with the upcoming conference.
STEP and CSTEP provide academic enrichment and support for historically underrepresented and economically disadvantaged students beginning in the middle school through college. The program is funded by the New York State Education Department and is a statewide network focused on helping to prepare students for higher education and increase the number who earn degrees in STEM and majors that lead to careers in licensed professions. STEP and CSTEP provide a variety of services which include academic and career related workshops, tutoring, fieldtrips, research opportunities, and skill building exercises.
