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By Diane Greenberg | November 10, 2008
Melvyn Morris Honored by School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. Melvyn Morris School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) honored Melvyn Morris, an administrator in BNL's Office of Educational Programs, at their "Sixty Over Sixty" inaugural awards gala for his contributions to education on Long Island. Along with 59 other honorees in various fields, he received a plaque at a dinner held on October 23 at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, NY. SBPLI is a nonprofit organization that specializes in creating partnerships between Long Island schools and businesses. Proceeds from the "Sixty Over Sixty" awards gala will benefit SBPLI-LI-FIRST's Robotics and Lego League competition programs. "I'm honored to receive this award and proud to be in public education for my whole career," Morris said. "I'm glad that my contributions have helped students and fellow educators. It's fun to work with students and teachers who are enthusiastic about learning." In 2006, Morris initiated the Open Space Stewardship Program at BNL, which takes students in grades K through 12 outdoors to perform environmental research on undeveloped land owned by a public or private agency. The program helps students learn scientific protocol, data collection and data analysis. Students also develop a sense of civic responsibility as stewards of local lands. About 30 schools and 100 teachers in Suffolk County are currently enrolled in the program. Morris also coordinates DOE's Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship Program at BNL, the National Science Foundation's Pre-Service Teacher Program, and the DOE Academies Creating Teacher Scientists Program. In addition, he is in charge of running the annual BNL Model Bridge Building Contest for high school students. Morris earned a B.S. in biology/education in 1962 from Stony Brook University (SBU), an M.S. in marine science from C.W. Post College in 1966, and both master's and doctorate degrees in science education from the University of Florida in 1966 and 1969, respectively. From 1962 to 1966, Morris taught science at Mulligan Jr. High School in Central Islip. He joined the staff of William Floyd High School in Shirley in 1969, where he was science chair. In 1972, he became an education instructor at SBU. He then joined the Shoreham-Wading River Central School District in 1974 as one of the first science teachers hired in the new district, and he helped to establish the science education curriculum in the district. Morris joined BNL in 2002 as an educational programs administrator. Morris was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1971. He held positions as adjunct instructor at SBU from 1998 to 2001; at Southampton College, 1998-1999; and at Suffolk Community College, 1975-1977. He was also cooperative education coordinator at Southampton College from 1998 to 2001. 2008-978 | Media & Communications Office |
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