Staff Biography: Valarie Bogan
Valarie Bogan is the Broadening Participation Manager of SuperKnova, NRAO’s E-learning platform.
With over 20 years of experience in education, she has worked at every level, from volunteering at nature centers to teaching middle and high school, and serving as a clinical instructor for pre-service high school science teachers. Valarie’s career also includes the distinguished role of NOAA Teacher at Sea. She holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus on Science Education and a graduate certificate in K-12 integrated STEM education from Purdue University. Additionally, she earned an M.S. in Biology from Central Michigan University and a B.S. in Marine Science from The University of South Carolina. Valarie is nationally recognized for her significant contributions in formal and informal STEM education.
Responsibilities at NRAO
Current Tasks
· Oversee the creation of a graduate course in Spectrum Policy
· Create a Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) citizen science project
· Produce a Use of Radio Frequency debate packet
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Guide the production of a prototype RFI museum exhibit
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Collaborate with the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to expand an existing citizen science project
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Recruit educators to pilot a lesson and provide feedback on the middle and high school lessons
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Coordinate with the Center for University Access (CUA) at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez to create engaging out of school activities based on the middle and high school lessons
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Guide the development and production of four educational videos from script to final edit
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Develop a strategic plan for SuperKnova
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Oversee the development of educational materials for SuperKnova, ensuring content quality and coherence to the ODI mission statement
Past Accomplishments
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Developed nine inquiry-based high school lessons on the electromagnetic spectrum
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Designed and implemented an asynchronous pedagogy training program, successfully completed by 26 participants
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Contracted Explora! to deliver professional development sessions on the lessons for 13 teachers working with Native students
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Created a citizen science project that allows people to investigate the uses of radio frequencies in their area
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Recruited six content experts to develop modules in their areas of expertise, collectively creating the equivalent of a three-credit undergraduate-level course
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Contracted a firm to translate lessons from English to Spanish, ensuring accessibility for a broader audience
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Mentored three undergraduate summer students as they completed their independent research projects
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Developed and executed a six-week hybrid teacher training program for 10 skilled educators recruited from across the U.S.
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Provided mentorship to 10 teachers as they developed inquiry-based lesson plans incorporating knowledge gained from the training
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Created an electronic catalog for lesson plans, providing access to both English and Spanish versions
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Developed a web page for the citizen science project, providing instructions and enabling users to upload data
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Recruited teachers to pilot middle and high school lessons and provide feedback for improvement
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Conducted national workshops based on the lessons at the National Science Teacher Association (NSTA) and American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) conferences
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Guided college students as they researched and wrote papers on designated topics which ensured the creation of high-quality content that met project specifications
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Utilized student-written papers as a foundation to develop engaging scripts for video content, aligning with project objectives and target audiences
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Designed and customized the visual layout of the WordPress pages
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Built an e-learning platform from the ground up over three years, recruiting and contracting content experts, guiding course development, and creating administrative documents, including the platform’s Terms of Use.
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Increased accessibility of Undergraduate curriculum by transiting the material into Asynchronous Digital Badge Courses
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Advised the course instructor in developing a series of hybrid courses designed to help individuals obtain their Ham radio Technician and General licenses