Become a UNL NSF Noyce Science Master Teaching Fellow and receive an $11,000 annual salary supplement!
Increase student interest and success in science by enhancing your knowledge of equitable and inclusive science teaching and learning by applying to be part of the third UNL Noyce Master Teaching Fellows cohort.
As a UNL Noyce Master Teaching Fellow, you will join a national community of NSF Noyce Master Teaching Fellows (MTFs). Additionally, you will participate in annual summer professional development institutes and complete an Educational Specialist (Ed.S.) Science Education Leadership degree program and long-term professional development for secondary science teachers, funded by the National Science Foundation and offered through UNL. If selected as a Noyce MTF, you will receive an $11,000 salary supplement per year.
Program Activities
- National Board Certification with free candidate support workshops during the initial certification process and science content courses to prepare for the science content test. These science courses can also be applied toward additional science teaching endorsements.
- Annual professional development institutes
- Project in science teacher leadership
- Educational Specialist (Ed.S.) degree (66 credit hours) that includes a certificate in educational leadership. Up to 24 credit hours of previous science, science education, and/or education coursework may be applied toward degree. If accepted into the program, there will be an option after the first full year to apply for a doctoral degree program (96 credit hours). Note: Neither of these degree program options will qualify you to become a school administrator.
To be eligible for the UNL Noyce Master Teaching Fellow program, you must:
- Be a current, experienced (ideally have taught for 5 or more years), secondary science teacher in a Nebraska high-need* school OR school in a high-need* district and be passionate about innovative and inclusive science education and teacher leadership.
- Be a full-time teacher in the classroom (i.e., not a science coach or curriculum specialist) in a high-need* district.
- Have completed a master’s degree in science or science education or are on track to finish within one (1) year of starting the Ed.S. degree program.
If accepted, you must continue to teach science full-time for five years to complete the requirements of the Noyce MTF fellowship and receive all five years of the salary supplement.
*To be considered high-need, at least ONE school in your district must meet the requirements below. Visit the NDE website to determine whether your school or district meets the requirements. If you are unsure about your school or district’s eligibility, please contact Dr. Beth Lewis at elewis3@unl.edu
A “high-need school district" has at least ONE school that meets the following requirements:
- The school meets at least ONE of the following criteria:
- At least 20% of the students served are from low-income families OR
- At least 10,000 of the students served are from low-income families OR
- The school is eligible for funding under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program OR the Rural and Low-Income School Program
- The school meets at least ONE of the following criteria:
- high teacher turnover rate OR
- high percentage of teachers with emergency, provisional, or temporary certification or licensure OR
- high percentage of teachers teaching in the academic subject areas or grade levels in which the teachers were NOT trained to teach
Application Requirements
- Letter of support from building principal or superintendent.
- Two (2) additional letters of recommendation from a former academic advisor or professor, school district curriculum specialist, and/or teaching colleague
- Professional resume
- College transcripts (undergraduate and graduate; proof of MA/MS degree or anticipated completion of degree; can be completed more than 10 years ago)
- Admission essay:Share your experience in science education, educational leadership, and describe how this program will meet your professional goals.
- Link to a 30-minute teaching video that illustrates your use of inquiry-based science instruction along with a 350- to 500-word analysis of your video that is not limited to, but fully responds to the following questions:
- What would precede and follow this lesson (i.e., in the instructional sequence)?
- Please identify the specific NGSS performance expectation(s) addressed and explain how your lesson was aligned. Additionally, discuss:
- i. What specific science content was the target?
- ii. What specific SEP(s) and CCC(s) did you employ, or could you employ, to enhance the lesson?
- After reviewing the videotaped science lesson, what would you change if you were to teach this lesson again?
NOTE: All application materials must be uploaded at the same time.
Important Deadlines
Noyce Fellowship Application
- July 1, 2023: Application window opens
- October 15, 2023: Application deadline for UNL Noyce Master Teaching Fellow program
- November 15, 2023: Notification of acceptance into third MTF cohort
- December 2023: Noyce MTF program orientation
UNL Degree Program Application (required for admittance into the program)
- December 1, 2023: Application window opens for Ed.S. degree
- January 2024: Start coursework (see UNL academic calendar)
FAQ – Noyce Science MTF Program National Board Certification Process and Fees
* The project, “Meeting the Needs of Diverse Students through a Next Generation of Science Teacher Leadership,” has been established by the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education thanks to the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Track 3 grant awarded by the National Science Foundation. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DUE-2050650.
Project Partners
Omaha Public Schools
Lincoln Public Schools
Grand Island Public Schools
Nebraska Teachers of Science (NATS)
Nebraska Department of Education
To begin your application for graduate admission, first apply through Graduate Studies to the program in Teaching, Learning & Teacher Education (do not indicate a specialization). After completing this step, you will receive an email guiding you through the system for the rest of the application.
Please note that there is a $50 application fee for admission to graduate study at UNL.
For support with your application please contact Joelle Tangen at jtangen2@unl.edu
For further information please contact program coordinator and Noyce grant principal investigator, Dr. Beth Lewis at elewis3@unl.edu