Summer Research Institute for Teachers (& Community College Instructors)
The Berkeley Engineering Research Experiences for Teachers - Artificial Intelligence Resources for a cleaner Environment (BERET-AIRE) is an empowering program that offers teachers and aspiring teachers with summer research fellowships. The program champions the development and teaching of lessons that connect engineering, data science, and artificial intelligence research into secondary science and mathematics curricula. Public middle and high school teachers from across the San Francisco Bay Area are welcome to join this in-person research experiences at UC Berkeley, running from June 30 - August 8, 2025. BERET participants are eligible to receive up to a $8,700 stipend for their summer work.
***New for summer 2025 - we are now accepting applications from local Community College STEM instructors too!***
BERET-AIRE offers a vibrant experience by pairing in-service and pre-service teachers within faculty labs at UC Berkeley, fostering collaboration under the supervision of a common research mentor.
- In-service teachers are recommended to have a minimum of two years of classroom experience teaching predominantly underrepresented students in Bay Area public middle and high schools.
- Pre-service teachers are UC Berkeley students majoring in math, science, or engineering and enrolled in one or more of the series of courses offered by the CalTeach program, exhibiting a strong commitment to pursue careers in teaching math or science in the K - 12 classroom.
- Community College instructors are recommended to have a minimum of three years of course instruction in a STEM related field.
Research disciplines vary widely but in the past have included Bioengineering, Chemistry, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Integrative Biology, Earth and Planetary Science, and Physics.
As part of this program:
- We try to pair one in-service (and/or one community college instructor) and one pre-service teacher in a host lab under the same research mentor, but working on their own unique research project.
- In-service teachers and instructors will work full-time (38-40hrs/week) for 6 weeks, where they will participate in all lab-related activities and meetings, as well as regular check-ins with their research mentors.
- Teams use their summer research experiences as the basis for developing new lessons and curricular materials for classroom use. During and after the summer, teams work together to develop a curriculum unit, and then jointly teach it in their classroom during the academic year. An additional stipend may be available to cover new class materials.
- During the summer, teachers and instructors engage in weekly professional learning and curricular design sessions with other participants, and present their research results in a poster session at the end of the summer.
- Additional professional learning will be offered every 3-4 months during the academic year to support the implementation of the newly designed curriculum. Additional stipends may be available for participation in ongoing professional learning sessions, and for those who implement any new curriculum based on their summer work.
To Apply
Teachers and instructors are welcome to join the research experiences at UC Berkeley for Summer 2025!
- To apply, please complete this online form.
- Applications will be accepted and reviewed starting in February 2025.
- Most decisions will be made by the end of May 2025. However, applying early improves your chances of acceptance into BERET as your application will be seen by a larger pool of potential research mentors.
Please email sri_calteach@berkeley.edu with questions.