Thursday, January 28th, 2016
For Immediate Release
MITS Welcomes Dr. Irene Porro to the Board
Dr. Irene Porro
Dr. Irene Porro, Director of the Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Center for Integrated Science Learning at Framingham State University has joined the Museum Institute for Teaching Science Board of Directors.
A native of Italy, Dr. Porro earned her Ph.D. in Space Science and Technology from the University of Padova in Italy and at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts. While at Harvard, Irene worked as the Manager of the Education and
Public Outreach program for the Infrared-Optical Telescope Array (IOTA). As part of the IOTA program, she also oversaw content development and the teacher professional development programs.
Before taking over at the McAuliffe Center, Irene worked at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, first at the Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research where she was the director of teacher professional development programs and outreach initiatives in support of NASA space missions, as well as being the designer, developer and director of formal and informal science education initiatives, co-developer of science museum exhibits, science theater productions and planetarium shows. More recently Irene worked at the MIT School of Engineering as Outreach Programs Officer responsible for identifying measures, indicators and methods for the evaluation of science and engineering programs and for needs assessment for overall operations.
At the McAuliffe Center, Irene directs all aspects and staff, including the Challenger Learning Center, Teacher Professional Development Programs, NASA Educator Resource Center (Co-Director), Summer Educational Programs, McAuliffe Center programs offered in the FSU planetarium and public programs.
Irene’s background as a working scientist and her experience with professional development for both formal and informal educators are a close match with MITS’ programs, making her a welcome addition to the Board of Directors.
MITS is a not-for-profit corporation that collaborates with formal and informal education institutions to provide STEM professional development opportunities for K-12 teachers and non-profit organizations across Massachusetts. Program offerings include week-long graduate level Summer Professional Development Institutes, day-long Professional Development Seminars and Customized School Services. For more information, visit www.mits.org.
###