Dear Cohort 1 and 2 State Leadership Teams, Thank you for your patience while we navigate the many changes that have occurred over the past few weeks. Please read this email carefully as there are a number of important updates. Kit Ordering The kit distributor has currently suspended operations, meaning that you will not be able to order any Light & Shadow kits at this time. They have all the materials in the warehouse and will resume assembly when they open again. We will notify you as soon as this happens, and make a plan for getting your kits shipped to you. Light & Shadow Trainings At this time, we ask that you pause on scheduling Light & Shadow trainings until we are able to provide kits again. We also ask that you not host any virtual trainings, as this model is not supported by this project. The timeline for when you should complete Light & Shadow trainings is flexible, and will likely extend into 2021. We will continue to monitor the situation and update you with changes to timelines and expectations as we know more. Upcoming Meeting Schedule Update We will continue to host community meetings throughout the spring and summer, and have made some additions to the schedule in order to support the network during this period. Check the website<http://leap.fi.edu/state-leaders> for an up-to-date listing of meetings and webinars. If possible, please plan to attend all meetings. If you are unable to join us, we will record each meeting and send the link following the call. April 29, 2020 12:00pm - 1:00pm Pacific | 3:00pm - 4:00pm Eastern Topic: Hosting Virtual Leap into Science Workshops Audience: All Leap into Science State Leads and Educators Registration: https://ngcproject.org/event/leap-into-science-hosting-virtual-leap-into-science-workshops May 20, 2020 11:00am - 12:00pm Pacific | 2:00pm - 3:00pm Eastern Topic: May Community Meeting - Supporting educators who are hosting virtual workshops Audience: Leap into Science State Leads ONLY June 17, 2020 11:00am - 12:30pm Pacific | 2:00pm - 3:30pm Eastern Topic: Balance Curriculum Training Webinar All Leap into Science State Leads and Educators Audience: All trained Leap into Science State Leads and Educators Registration: https://ngcproject.org/event/leap-into-science-balance-curriculum-training July: 15, 2020 11:00am - 12:00pm Pacific | 2:00pm - 3:00pm Eastern Topic: July Community Call - Light & Shadow Train-the-Trainer Audience: Leap into Science State Leads ONLY August: No community meeting - State Leadership Team Check-ins as needed September: No community meeting - State Leadership Team Check-ins as needed Leap Support Email The Leap into Science national team has created a support email for all State Leadership Teams (leapsupport@fi.edu<mailto:leapsupport@fi.edu>), which all state leaders should use moving forward for program support and questions instead of emailing Casi directly. This will support our efforts to streamline communication and support we provide to the state leaders. Please also make sure to add this email to your safe sender list to prevent messages going into Junk or Spam folders. This email is to serve State Leadership Teams only. To streamline our support, we ask that you please do not share the leapsupport@fi.edu<mailto:leapsupport@fi.edu> email address with educators. If educators have questions, they can complete the contact form on the Leap into Science website<http://leap.fi.edu/contact>. Staffing Changes We understand that there may be staffing changes due to COVID-19 closures. If you anticipate any changes to your state leadership team, please let us know by emailing the new Leap into Science Support email at leapsupport@fi.edu<mailto:leapsupport@fi.edu>. National Team Changes Unfortunately like most museums in the United States, The Franklin Institute experienced a significant reduction in staff. It saddens us to share that Emily Early is no longer at The Franklin Institute. To reach the national program team, please use the new support email at leapsupport@fi.edu<mailto:leapsupport@fi.edu> one of the team members will respond at their earliest convenience. Thank you, The Leap into Science National Team -- Casi Herrera Educational Programs Manager Pronouns: she/her National Girls Collaborative Project<https://ngcproject.org/> | The Connectory<https://theconnectory.org/> | FabFems<https://fabfems.org/>