September 1, 1998
Dear Educator:
Welcome to the 1998-1999 New Mexico High School Supercomputing Challenge! Let Technology Have a Hand in Your Future! The Supercomputing Challenge is organized and administered by New Mexico Technet and Los Alamos Lab/DOE.
As the 1998-99 school year starts, we are inviting students and teachers from your school district to participate in the 9th Annual Challenge Program. More than 4,000 New Mexico high school students and teachers have worked to solve interesting scientific problems since the inception of the program in 1990. As New Mexico addresses its workforce needs for the 21st Century, it is evident that students who participate in the Challenge are better prepared to plan for careers in the high-tech industry.
The Challenge is a learning experience set in the context of a competition. Through workshops, educational materials, and the help of technical support resources, students and teachers work to solve complex problems in a field of science of their choice. Teams that make significant progress on their projects can compete for awards of savings bonds and scholarships for individuals, computer equipment for the schools, and trophies for teams.
This year the program will again emphasize computational science, project design and the use of computers to find solutions to scientific problems. Instructional goals include collaboration, communication, research, programming and project follow-through.
Teachers are expected to provide instruction for their teams in network connectivity, Internet use, electronic mail, HTML, and programming language. Resources and mentors are available on the Internet to aid in this instruction.
At least one teacher and one student from each team must attend the Kickoff Conference at Glorieta. The kickoff schedule includes workshops, seminars, and lab-based classes. Students can select a curricular track appropriate to their skill level and interest. Although full team attendance is not mandatory, all students and teachers are encouraged to attend. Each session of the conference will include one overnight stay, October 18th for those greater than 100 miles from Glorieta and October 19th for those living within 100 miles of Glorieta.
Each student and teacher attending the Kickoff Conference will pay a $20.00 registration fee, due before the conference. A hardship fund has been established. Please contact Betsy or Celia at New Mexico Technet at (505) 345-6555 if you have a student who would not be able to attend without assistance.
The Challenge is offered at minimal cost to schools. Administrators are asked to support their teachers and teams by enabling them to attend training sessions during the year, have access to appropriate equipment, and work as a team to accomplish their goals. Each school must provide a connection to the Internet.
We urge you to read through the Registration Handbook for an overview of the Challenge and detailed information about the events that make up the Challenge year. Instructions for electronic registration are described in the Registration Handbook. A copy of the Acceptable Use Policy is attached. You can access additional information on the Challenge Web Page located at:
http://www.challenge.nm.org
Please look closely at the rules for participation and the Acceptable Use Policy which each participant agrees to follow. We suggest that you provide a copy of the AUP to the participants' parents.
Registration for the 1998-98 Challenge closes at 5:00pm, Tuesday, September 22, 1998. Mailed, faxed, electronic, or walk-in registration forms must be received by Technet by this date. The original paper copy of Team Entry Authorization Form must be received no later than 5:00pm, Tuesday, September 29, 1998. A copy is attached.
We hope you will encourage your students to form teams, register, and come to the Kickoff Conference in Glorieta, New Mexico, October 18 – 20, 1998. Please share this information with your colleagues. If you would like a visit from a member of the Challenge staff to discuss the program or strategies for developing projects, please phone Betsy or Celia at 345-6555.
Sincerely,
Betsy Frederick, Celia Einhorn
New Mexico Technet, Inc.