The 1st Annual MAS conference was held on Friday, May 22, 2009 at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and was a great success enjoyed by all! The keynote speaker, Bill Nye, the Science Guy, received standing ovations and Tom Ricardi thrilled the crowds with his birds of prey.

Photos from the Annual Meeting

Dr. Peg Riley, professor of biology at UMass Amherst and president of the MAS opened the day with a moving and inspiring talk about the state of science education in Massachusetts. Dr. Riley pointed out that although the Commonwealth ranks highly in science education compared to other states, we are losing ground nationally to other countries in this regard proving we must work to increase scientific awareness and literacy.

The event also featured 17 booths and science demonstrations including MAS Kids! Microbes are Us, MAS Interns podcast premieres, the Boston Museum of Science, Science Club for Girls, the Harvard Natural History Museum, Monty the Python and Friends, the UMass Natural History collections, A-2-Z Science Store, the Sea Education Association, the Raytheon Stand and Deliver Program, the UMass Graduate Program in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, The UMass Amherst departments of Biology and Physics, the UMass Amherst Science Outreach Club, and the Fueling the Future Center for Chemical Innovation.

The day concluded with an awards ceremony honoring the MAS donors, Fellows, MJAS delegates and MAS volunteers of the year. Bill Nye enthusiastically accepted his award before a cheering audience for service to science education.

We look forward to seeing you next April in Boston for the 2010 annual meeting.

If you are not yet a member, please consider contributing to this rapidly growing effort. We are a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers. Every dollar that you contribute is used to further the goal of ensuring Massachusetts remains one of the Nation's leaders in science education, research, and industry.