Breakout Sessions

Dawn Bowlus - Jacobson Institute, University of Iowa

Vicky Pasquantonio - Director, PBS Newshour Classroom

Carolyn Walling - Educator, Iowa City Schools

Dasia Taylor - Inventor & Entrepreneur, NERD STEM Box

Hear from Dasia Taylor and her HS STEM teacher, Carolyn Walling. Dasia is inventor of color-changing sutures and creator of NERD STEM Box. Listen to Dasia’s startup story- what motivated her to invent and is now leading her through the entrepreneurial startup process Many inventors describe themselves as accidental entrepreneurs. Yet, the habits, skills, and mindsets of inventors and entrepreneurs have tremendous crossover. This session provides an opportunity to learn how leveraging the entrepreneurial classroom creates an incubator for students engaged in invention-based startups to advance their work. 

Tamara Galoyan - Learning & Curriculum Specialist, Lemelson-MIT Program

Cristina Sáenz - Invention Education Manager, Lemelson-MIT Program

Stephanie Couch - Executive Director, Lemelson-MIT Program

This session presents a nationwide qualitative study with interviews involving 189 educators across the United States. We explored the challenges facing K-12 schools and community colleges, and the types of evidence that would convince these stakeholders of the value of education programs such as the IvE offerings by the Lemelson-MIT (LMIT) Program. The research was conducted by three IvE education researchers and twelve MIT student research fellows participating in a six-week internship in Summer 2024 and Summer 2025. This proposal presents findings from the analysis of 121 transcripts. We will also present cases of both the challenges and successes we have encountered through our work with schools and districts as they are integrating invention education into the school day. Finally, we will invite participants to share their own challenges and success stories from the field in an effort to deepen our common understandings.

Jackie Eyl - Chief Experience Officer, KID Museum

Pamela Joslyn - STEM Educator, Muscatine Community School District

This session explores two community-based invention programs:  "Reinvent Muscatine" and "KID Museum’s:Invent the Future" to offer a comprehensive look at how authentic, sustainable partnerships foster innovation ecosystems within educational settings and communities. We'll explore strategies for engaging community stakeholders while empowering students to become innovative problem-solvers by tackling real-world challenges.

We'll share actionable insights on cultivating essential durable skills such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration, demonstrating how these initiatives can transform both student learning and community development. You'll discover how to build robust relationships with local mentors, businesses, and community members. We will highlight best practices in establishing and nurturing these critical connections, from engaging school administrators and teachers, fostering family involvement and securing long-term financial investment. 

 You'll leave with practical tools and an enhanced perspective on invention education's role as a catalyst for sustainable, student-led change, even in the face of resource limitations and systemic challenges.

Adam Maltese - Professor of Science Education, Indiana University

Kelli Paul - Research Scientist, Indiana University

Joanna Garner - Executive Director, The Center for Educational Partnerships at Old Dominion University

Peter Wardrip - Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin

In this session we will share the results of a recent survey of teachers about inventive problem solving and engage in discussion about the best strategies for advancing this work. Specifically, we will consider ways to build on and advance this work to where we collaborate with teachers to create supports for them to develop key capacities in their learners and to gather data to demonstrate change. We will share the input we received from more than 250 teachers across the US who provided ratings on 43 inventive problem-solving capacities and the challenges they face in implementing and assessing them. We expect to spend the majority of this session in discussion around how to build out, test and revise supports in a way that will be most useful for educators.

Michelle Reaves - Executive Director, Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program

Shiri Gandhi - Professor, Marketing & Supply Chain Management / Director of EMUiNVENT, Eastern Michigan University/EMUiNVENT

This session details how DAPCEP (Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program), an out-of-school-time (OST) STEM program, partnered with Eastern Michigan University (EMU) to engage elementary students in an immersive invention education experience. Through a six-week Saturday Series course with a specialized curriculum, students developed and showcased innovative ideas at the local Invention Convention. This session will share insights, lessons learned, and outcomes from building collaborative partnerships between schools, OST providers, and universities, serving as a model for asset-based invention education for underrepresented students in STEM.

Dr. Susan Rowe - ThinkWise Studio

Bri Livingood - NextMinds

Libby Grace - iINVENT Program Coordinator, Oregon State University

Darryl Thomas - Professor of Dance, Western Oregon University

Melissa Kuhn - Research Associate, RMC Research Corporation

This session will share key findings from years of research on inclusive teaching strategies that empower all learners to explore and engage in the process of invention. Participants will gain insights into how inclusive pedagogical practices can expand educators’ understanding and shift mindsets around the role of invention in education. The discussion will highlight practical approaches to fostering creativity, problem-solving, and innovation in diverse classrooms. Attendees will also receive resources and tools designed to help them recognize their pivotal role in cultivating students’ inventiveness.

Michela Sottura - Partnerships & Communications Manager, Oregon MESA

Cristina Sáenz - Invention Education Manager, Lemelson- MIT Program 

Vanessa Briseño - Communications Officer, The Lemelson Foundation

The invention education community is rich with powerful stories of student ingenuity and resilience, teacher dedication, and life-changing relationships. Storytelling is a key strategy to grow awareness, engage new partners, and deepen impact. In this session, we’ll explore the ways storytelling can be leveraged to engage new audiences, secure funding and commitment from stakeholders, and amplify the voices of students and educators at the heart of invention education.

A panel of communications leaders will share real-world examples and results, from student success stories to strategic campaigns, highlighting how narratives can shape hearts, minds, and systems.

Participants will also engage in a hands-on activity designed to surface meaningful stories from diverse contexts. Whether you want to attract educators, inspire funders, or strengthen community support, this session will provide practical tools to craft authentic stories that connect and mobilize.

Jill Ott - Chief Executive Officer, Science Coach

Fathia Bazouche - PhD Candidate, Ohio University

Stephanie Couch - Executive Director, Lemelson-MIT Program

Melinda Kalainoff - Independent Researcher & Evaluator, Kalainoff Consulting and Research, LLC

This session explores how the collaborative research of the Science Coach (SC) ecosystem has not only clarified the structure, stakeholders, and value flow within SC, but also revealed a replicable process model for identifying and strengthening the often-hidden ecosystems that underpin successful invention/innovation programs. We will discuss strategies for building ecosystems from scratch and/or integrating work within an existing STEM ecosystem. Attendees will learn how the SC ecosystem was built, highlighting key principles, relationships, and tensions. The presentation will show how an ethnographic study helped map the SC ecosystem. Attendees will sketch and share their ecosystems, and discuss differences between creating an ecosystem from scratch versus integrating efforts in a region with an established STEM ecosystem effort.

Brian Martin - STEM Coordinator, Valley Middle School of STEM

Aubrey Mozer - Community Relations Manager, GF Building Flow Solutions

This presentation highlights a unique four-year partnership between Valley Middle School of STEM and GF Building Flow Solutions, focused on sustainability, innovation, and real-world learning. Together, they developed and implemented an Invention Education project for 6th-grade science students centered around the creative reuse of PEX tubing—small leftover pieces that would otherwise be discarded.GF employees and Valley Middle School teachers collaborated to design a project that challenges students to invent practical or imaginative new uses for the tubing, with the goal of sharing viable ideas with potential end users. The session will explore the project’s evolution, its impact on students, and the collaborative process between educators and industry professionals. Attendees will hear insights and reflections from students, teachers, and GF employees, offering a well-rounded perspective on the educational and environmental value of the initiative.The presentation will conclude with a look at future plans for the program and invite audience members to participate in a hands-on brainstorming activity—challenging them to imagine their own creative applications for reused PEX tubing. This session is ideal for educators, industry partners, and anyone interested in sustainable education and school-business collaboration. 

Nyssa Buning - Head of Invention Education, Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, Smithsonian National Museum of American History

Joanna Garner - Executive Director, Center for Educational Partnerships, Old Dominion University

Avi Kaplan - Professor of Educational Psychology, Temple University

Invention education can support the development of an inventive identity, a personal system of self-perceptions, purposes and goals, beliefs, action possibilities, and emotions that guide inventive actions across social roles (e.g. a visitor in a museum, a student in a classroom). In this session, facilitators from Spark!Lab and Change Your Game at the National Museum of American History will support participants’ exploration of inventive identity design, facilitation, and evaluation strategies. The session will begin by presenting our conceptual model of inventive identity (DSMRI; Kaplan & Garner, 2017), and explore Spark!Lab activities that support identity exploration. Participants will be introduced to the Inventive Identity Facilitation Toolkit (Buning, Hintz, Garner, Kaplan & Lovejoy, 2025), consider its relevance to their own work, and review case studies of diverse individuals’ identity exploration. The session will conclude with resources for evaluating identity exploration, and an opportunity to continue discussion through a community of practice. 

Melissa Frey - Senior Manager, Network Development, The Henry Ford

Emily Shannon - Senior Manager, Affiliate Relations, The Henry Ford

Kim Reynolds - Senior Program Manager, Edson Entrepreneurship + Innovation Institute at Arizona State University

Deborah Ivie - STEM Lead, Utah State Extension Youth Programs

Madeline Stoddard - Education and Outreach Coordinator for IGNITE, University of South Florida

Jennifer Easterling - Program Specialist, Spark! PK-12 Engineering Outreach, Texas A&M University

Join a dynamic panel of Invention Convention Worldwide (ICW) Affiliates as we explore how diverse educational networks are working together to cultivate the next generation of inventors. This session highlights successful partnerships with 4-H, Project Lead the Way, Career Technical Education programs and more, showcasing how collaborative efforts are creating equitable STEM pathways for K–12 students. Panelists will share strategies for building immersive invention education experiences, including student competitions and applied STEM curricula. Whether you're a classroom teacher, administrator, or informal educator, you’ll leave with actionable ideas to strengthen your community of practice and spark innovation in your students. Discover how to leverage national networks and local expertise to expand your impact and inspire young minds to become lifelong inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs.