.....STANYS offers newsletters and conferences at the state and section level. Check out our Dates to Remember and Things to Look for in the Future sections of this newsletter. Listservs provide an ongoing venue for dialog about current events in specific subject areas. Many of us belong to more than one because topics tend to overlap sometimes. To subscribe (and it's free!!) go to http://external.oneonta.edu/mentor/. Directions for subscribing and explanations about the various listservs are provided. NSTA provides magazines, newsletters, and conferences that are unforgettable. Within the magazines is a wealth of information. Other professional organizations such as NESTA (National Earth Science Teachers Association) which are available in all subject areas have excellent newsletters. Websites such as American Geological Institute (AGI), United States Geological Survey (USGS), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and much, much more are available on line.

.....Venture out into the alphabet soup and you will find some incredible resources.

.....The first session is probably tomorrow, by the time you receive this, but John Merlino has put his heart into this. Please see the flier attached to this newsletter for more information. Since the flier was printed up we also have Herb Gottlieb joining us with a 50 minute session for Chemistry and Physics teachers. He will be setting up and demonstrating new apparatus from a local company. This may be of interest to Chemistry and Physics teachers old or new. John has three rooms with demonstrations for smartboards for various levels and subject areas. He has not forgotten our elementary science people. We know that we cannot forget you! If you are coming directly from school we have a few finger foods to sooth those hunger pangs and seeing old friends and meeting new always seems to make the problems of the day less daunting. Join us for a few hours, enjoy good company and information meetings, and take home a certificate for professional development. We hope to see you there.

.....Looking ahead to November/December you will see a question mark about a Pipehenge presentation. Larry Rand, our resident expert on this subject, is currently presenting to the Astronomical Society of the Pacific and we have not been able to tie him down to a date. But it is in the works. You shouldn't miss this Mini Conference. Larry will mesmerize you with this fascinating demonstration. We will hold this in our northern section at SUNY UCC with the help of our liaison Dr. Ted Skaar.

.....In January, David and Sharon Baker will be doing their Eagle Watch, as they have done for several years, but this year we will hold a Mini Conference in advance of the walk to educate and prepare participants before they are in the field. This presentation we hope to hold at the West Point Golf Clubhouse and we will serve up our specialties with a Pot Luck Dinner a la the Executive Board. This will be a relaxed and fun conference in a very comfortable setting.

.....As you can see there is a question mark by both the February and the March Conferences. We would love to visit our far western or our far eastern areas (Sullivan and Rockland), but we lack the necessary contacts. If you have suggestions we are very willing to have you join us at any of our meetings or email us with ideas.

.....You will notice that we are trying to keep the costs down for you to attend the conferences. Our hope is to keep them at $5 for members and $10 for nonmembers. To do this and other activities for our section please see our fundraiser on the next page. We think it is something that everyone can help out with and which will help our section fund activities we feel are important.

.....We hope to see all of you at some time during the next few months.

.....Why do we want to fundraise? We would like to keep the cost to you at our Mini Conferences down and we would like to start a new program where we can do some great things for our students. This Spring we hope to hold our first Science Saturday where we can involve our students in hands-on situations that will help them appreciate science a little more. If you want to be involved in this please contact one of the Executive Board members listed on the front of this newsletter. We hope to see this program grow and get more people involved in this venture.

.....Barnes and Noble has been gracious enough to give us this opportunity. Please, help us out by visiting our website at www.stanysse.org , printing out a voucher for yourself and joining us at the Newburgh Barnes and Noble.

.....Please visit our site for more information. And, while you are wondering about the cost, remember that other conferences for SO can cost several hundreds of dollars. We have tried to bring you quality at a very reasonable rate. Come get the Fever!!