A hub is a school, university, institute, or research centre which partners up with at least 3 schools (or 2 schools, if the prospective hub is a school itself) in its region and manages and distributes the detector kits and educational materials. Priority will be given to hubs that partner up with at least one school in an underserved community (for example with a high percentage of students from socio-economically disadvantaged homes or located in a rural area) or that place a strong emphasis on activities engaging female students in STEM activities. 

Selected hubs are expected to:

• Adapt and translate the educational materials provided by TIMEPIX@school to the local curriculum
• Distribute the adapted educational materials and detector kits to at least 3 agreed partner schools in the area (or 2 schools, if the prospective hub is a school itself)
• Act as the first point of contact with partner schools, providing technical support, following initial online training from CERN
• Liaise with the TIMEPIX@school team at CERN to provide feedback on the programme’s development
• Contribute to the TIMEPIX@school community by sharing experiences, adapted educational materials, and detector data
• Contribute to assessing the programme’s impact by distributing teacher and student surveys to participating schools
• Ensure safe and responsible use of the equipment, and return it in good condition at the end of the loan period

Hubs have flexibility in how they organise collaboration with partner schools. For example, schools may use the detector kits at different times during the academic year, allowing a larger number of students to benefit. Activities can range from short classroom experiments to more extended student projects spanning a larger part of the year. Implementation may also vary across educational levels, from lower- to upper-secondary (typically ages 10-18), requiring adaptation in content and student autonomy. Applicants will be asked to describe their intended model of use in their proposal.

Implementation may also vary depending on the type of hub. School-based hubs may focus on collaboration between partner schools or may also choose to collaborate with local organisations such as science museums, science centres, or other educational institutions. Hubs based in universities, institutes, or research centres may additionally provide access to scientific facilities and opportunities to interact with scientists. Applicants are encouraged to make use of their institutional strengths and local context to enrich the experience for participating teachers and students.

Participating teachers will benefit from:

• Opportunities to enrich their teaching practice through modern, engaging and application-oriented activities developed within the TIMEPIX@school framework
• Access to the TIMEPIX@school Teachers’ Network for peer exchange and support
• Opportunities to meet the scientists and users behind the Timepix technology

Eligibility

For the academic year 2026-2027, applications to become a TIMEPIX@school regional hub are open to schools, universities, institutes, or research centres that are based in one of CERN’s Member or Associate Member States. Each application must include:

• A designated hub coordinator responsible for project implementation and liaison with CERN
• A committed hub team with the capacity to provide technical support to participating schools
• A list of at minimum 3 agreed partner schools in the local area (or 2 schools, if the prospective hub is a school itself)
• A realistic and well-articulated plan for implementing the educational activities across the academic year

Priorities

In the selection process, priority will be given to proposals that demonstrate:

• Partnership with publicly funded schools, schools with a high percentage of students from socio-economically disadvantaged homes, or schools located in rural areas
• A clear focus on broadening participation in STEM, through activities that actively engage female students and students in underserved communities
• Motivation of the hub team, demonstrated through a strong commitment to the programme’s objectives, a proactive approach to engaging partner schools, and a willingness to take ownership of the local implementation and contribute to the programme’s development
• Creativity in programme design, for example through inter-school collaboration, shared measurement campaigns, or partnerships with local institutions

Additional considerations

Previous experience with Timepix-based detectors is not required and will not be considered a prerequisite.

Proposals will be assessed with the aim of ensuring geographical diversity and a balanced representation of contexts across the programme.

Due to the limited number of hubs that can be supported in the first pilot year of the programme, not all high-quality proposals can be selected. However, TIMEPIX@school aims to build a broad and inclusive community of practice. We are working to create opportunities for institutions that are not selected this year to participate in online activities or get access to data suitable for analysis in classroom settings.

We warmly encourage all interested institutions to remain connected to the TIMEPIX@school community by subscribing for updates and to apply in future calls as the programme expands.