The institute has grown and changed lives through math and science education thanks to the generous support of Paul and Judy Andrews – including a new $10 million gift for endowed scholarships.
The Andrews Institute of Mathematics and Science Education at TCU was originally founded
as the Institute of Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education in 1999 as part
of a National Science Foundation grant. The Institute operated out of a facility adjacent
to the Bailey building and provided resources to both students and mathematics and
science teachers.
Dr. Molly Weinburgh, director of the Andrews Institute, recalls the interactive and community-oriented feeling of the Institute’s work. They had plastic buckets of mathematics and science curriculum that local teachers could check out and use in their own classes, with corresponding lesson plans for various grade levels written by TCU students. The Andrews Institute was and still is a valued part of the mathematics and science community in Fort Worth.
In 2008, a generous gift from Paul and Judy Andrews spurred the Institute’s renaming to the Andrews Institute of Mathematics and Science Education. The Andrews Institute continues to provide an environment for innovation and change in mathematics and science education in K-12 schools. The Andrews Chair of Mathematics & Science Education was established in 2018, with Dr. Weinburgh as the inaugural holder.
$10 Million Gift for Endowed Scholarships at Andrews Institute
Recently, the late Dr. Paul E. Andrews, Jr., has provided an enormous act of kindness and generosity through his estate—a $10 million gift to endow scholarships within the Andrews Institute to continue to encourage and support promising and exemplary students in mathematics and science education.
This gift supports Lead On: A Campaign for TCU, the university’s most ambitious philanthropic campaign in its nearly 150-year history. The $1 billion goal of this campaign will strengthen TCU’s people, programs and endowment.
“The College of Education is grateful for this investment in our students and their futures,” said Dr. Frank Hernandez, dean of the College of Education at TCU. “The Andrews Institute has a long history of increasing the number of students in mathematics and science at all levels. This type of gift is what is needed to continue bringing qualified math and science professionals to our schools, communities and universities.”
Dr. Weinburgh looks forward to the ways in which these additional resources can benefit both the Andrews Institute and the College of Education. “I am honored and humbled to help steward this gift as it provides support for mathematics and science educators from undergraduate teacher candidates to doctoral candidates to research faculty,” she said.
In addition to outreach programs, increasing the number of students in mathematics and science pipelines, and providing professional development opportunities, the Andrews Institute gives back to the mathematics and science community by helping fund ongoing research projects.
For example, Weinburgh is currently working with a team examining the communication (including text, color, and images) of emergent multilingual learners as evidenced through their science journals. The students participated in a summer program that was a collaboration between Fort Worth ISD and the Andrews institute.
Through its various phases of evolution over the years, the Andrews Institute has always remained true to its original purpose: to provide a space for innovation and change in mathematics and science education. With the generosity of Dr. and Mrs. Andrews, the Institute will continue to effect positive change in the community in perpetuity.
To learn more about the Andrews Institute, visit our website.
To learn more about the campaign, visit Lead On: A Campaign for TCU.
