ESTEP

The Earth Science Teacher Education Project (ESTEP) supports the implementation of earth and environmental themes into school curricula using Minnesota natural resources as phenomena for investigation. This work is done in collaboration with the Minnesota Science Teachers Association (MnSTA). Funding for this project is provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR).

Kate will be co-teaching (with Lee Schmitt) two of the 3rd-8th grade Summer 2025 Workshops and an online course Minnesota Rocks and Resources in Fall 2025.

Summer Workshop: Karst Geology / Minnesota Groundwater Issues July 23-24 at Spring Valley / Mystery Cave

Summer Workshop: Minnesota Rocks as Resources July 30-31 at Saint Cloud

Online Course Fall 2025: GEOS 599: Rocks and Natural Resources

General ESTEP Info:

MnSTA is proud to announce that ESTEP 2.0 has been fully funded at $643,000 through a generous grant from the Environment and Natural Resource Trust Fund. This funding is for programming beginning July 1, 2025 and goes to June 30, 2027.

This grant will provide Minnesota science teachers the following professional development opportunities over the next two years:

  • 12 summer workshops – TEACHERS EARN GRADUATE CREDIT OR STIPEND!
  • 18 online courses – FREE!  TEACHERS EARN GRADUATE CREDIT!
  • 12 in-person Saturday Seminars – STIPENDS FOR PARTICIPANTS!
  • 16 online short course workshops on specific topics, including a series of courses specifically designed for elementary teachers – STIPENDS FOR PARTICIPANTS!
  • Develop an online repository of earth and cross-disciplinary 3D resources for all Minnesota science teachers – FREE ACCESS!

ESTEP 2.0 will continue to support the implementation of earth and environmental themes into school curricula while supporting continued use of Minnesota natural resources as phenomena for investigation. ESTEP 2.0 is intentionally designing programs that include environmental benchmarks that progress through the upper elementary and middle school benchmarks, as well as from the life, earth and space, chemistry and physics high school benchmarks.  

Questions about ESTEP? Email Dana Smith at estep@mnsta.org