Educators,
That’s a wrap on 2022. Thank you for joining us this past year! We hope to visit your classrooms or programs in 2023!
Professional Development Opportunity
Middle school science teachers! Mobilize your students to put their blossoming microscope skills to work looking for mosquitoes and identifying other weird backyard micro-wildlife with our citizen science program Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D.
Spring Classroom Programs
Spring semester is fast approaching. Book a NGSS-aligned classroom visit for 2023 now!
6 Sustainable Gifts Everyone Needs This Holiday Season
Check out these great gift ideas for all your mosquito-hating loved ones.
Advancing Student Research Teaching (ASRT)
Academy for high school teachers looking to support student research. This program takes place February 13 - February 17, 2023 from 8am - 3pm. PAYMENT REQUIRED for this program. Click HERE for cost and details.
Take a journey through our proudest moments this year. A huge thank you to all the hard working teachers and students that partnered with us to make this year a smashing success!
2021 Public Health Teacher of the Year
In January, our Public Health Teacher of the Year, Gina Ayala, was awarded for her hands-on, remote-learning using our enhanced science curriculum during the 2021 school year. Find out who the 2022 awardee is by clicking on the link!
Image of 2021 Public Health Teacher of the Year presenting to school district.
MVCAC Presentation for Operation Mosquito GRID
We put our programs under the “microscope” by presenting at the Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California (MVCAC) annual conference in February 2022. Sharing and networking with other vector-control educators provides opportunities for important feedback to continue improving our school programs.
Image of presentation at Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California.
Vector Inspector of the Year (VIY) Awards
Ten students from San Jose Charter Academy and 17 students from Clifton Middle School were awarded for their citizen science service and contributions to public health for the 2021 - 2022 school year.
Image of Vector Inspectors of the Year recipients from San Jose Charter Academy.
These students completed their mosquito surveillance, reported their results to our agency, and completed multiple surveys up to 6-months post surveillance. Thank you Mr. Woo, Ms. Argüello, and Mrs. Ayala for doing your part to make science relevant, actionable, and beneficial to the community.
First ever Teacher Training Program at Cal Poly Pomona
We did it! After months of planning our class was added to the Cal Poly Schedule of Classes and our local teachers were trained to run Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. on their own! Our trained teachers went on to facilitate Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. with over 550 students this fall. 👏
Image of Teacher Trainees.
Summer is for Summer Programs!
We loved educating our young residents through Summer programs! These programs are held at a perfect time to teach students how to get rid of mosquitoes from their homes and communities.
Image of students looking at insect collections.
Citizen Science
The 234 elementary school Vector Inspector Program (V.I.P.) participants learned how to eliminate mosquitoes from their homes, reduce mosquito habitats, and submitted water samples for analysis.
Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. recruited 576 middle school students to collect water samples, set lures for the surveillance of invasive Aedes mosquitoes, and report their findings to our district.
Image of nursing students analyzing hundreds of samples for citizen science.
Measurable Data
Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. Students took pre-assessments and post-assessments as part of the program. Overall, students demonstrated knowledge gain and felt more confident in their ability to stop mosquitoes from growing in their yard! Hooray!
We look forward to an amazing year of citizen science in 2023!
Student data from Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. 2022.
ESA Presentation for Journey of the Germ
Our curriculum was on stage again at the Entomological Society of America’s Annual Conference for our interactive educational experience Journey of the Germ. Thanks to ESA’s grant, this educational resource can be utilized freely by teachers and students in the fight against mosquitoes and the disease they carry.
Image of Journey of the Germ logo.