From Winston-Salem Journal:
As a child, I loved the natural world. Maybe it had something to do with growing up in a small town where there were no distractions of big-city lights. Maybe the change of seasons with its foliage colors seduced me. Maybe it was because nature had so many secrets and I was thrilled at being a detective, uncovering them one by one. My neighbor, Betsy Hilfiger, and I built a tree fort, carving out rooms within the foliage and accompanying secret passageways among the tall grasses below, that fueled our imaginations as well as our love of nature. We collected wild flowers instead of Barbie dolls. We put Band-Aids on earthworms that inadvertently went through our dads’ lawnmowers. We diligently rescued baby birds fallen from their nests. Betsy’s older brother, Tommy, collected Beatles records, while Betsy and I collected beetles. He went on to design clothes, and I went on to study science. In retrospect, I occasionally realize that Tommy can literally buy an entire rain forest while I am trying to save it. Our lifelong journeys took unpredictable twists and turns from our childhood in Elmira, N.Y., but we both shared passion for our respective pursuits.
Several decades later, I passionately seek to inspire the next generation of scientists. As we look to solutions for global problems, STEM education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) pays the bills. Science education for our kids links to national security, economy and health. To date, North Carolina is the first state in the country to creatively leverage its limited education funds in a transformational way. On April 20, a new model for North Carolina science education will be launched in Raleigh. Called the Nature Research Center, its iconic Daily Planet Theater (yes, named after Superman!) has the capability to broadcast cutting-edge science to all classrooms around the state.
What do Superman and science education in North Carolina have in common? Both science and Superman depend upon finding the truth to solve global challenges. Like the secret life of Superman disguised as newspaper reporter Clark Kent, the Nature Research Center (NRC) will inspire kids to become detectives about the scientific questions that affect their daily lives.
