EXPANDING STEM EDUCATIONAL ACCESS FOR MILITARY-CONNECTED CHILDREN ACROSS THE GULF SOUTH
Abstract
STEM NOLA is a community-based non-profit organization founded by New Orleans native, and former award-winning tenured Tulane University Engineering professor, Dr. Calvin Mackie. The mission of STEM NOLA is to grow future innovators, creators, and entrepreneurs through inspiration, engagement, and exposure to opportunities in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). STEM NOLA recognizes that there is a lack of quality STEM educational opportunities (for both students and educators) geared toward underserved and military-dependant families. STEM NOLA also recognizes that the Department of Defense (DoD) is the largest employer of scientists and engineers in the United States, and as such, the DoD must maintain a robust pipeline of STEM talent by investing in educational STEM activities to ensure the DoD attracts the best and brightest talent this nation has to offer. In response to the issues highlighted above, through the support of the Department of Defense’s Funding Opportunity HQ0034-20-S-FO01, STEM NOLA will fund a suite of programs in four communities across the Gulf South, all of which contain a strong military presence. The DoD-supported programming, and associated project outcomes, that will occur in each of these communities are as follows: -12 STEM Saturdays (four in each community per year): STEM Saturdays deliver high-quality, hands-on STEM education activities in a community-based setting. STEM NOLA’s DoD-supported STEM Saturdays will provide STEM programming to participants in grades K-8, utilizing modules aligned to national educational standards. STEM NOLA anticipates that 2000+ students will participate in STEM Saturdays per community and that 2000+ families will register for information on further engagement. Through participating in STEM Saturdays, 85 percent of participating students and families will develop increased interest in STEM learning and STEM careers and 85 percent of participating families will be better equipped to support student learning. -Four weeks of STEM-focused summer camps: STEM NOLA’s DoD supported summer camps, which will be held in all four communities highlighted throughout this proposal, will provide high quality STEM-based instruction to students in grades 3th-8th for four weeks. 100 students will attend summer camp programming in each community annually and 85 percent of participating students will build increased knowledge of, and interest in, STEM learning, improve STEM career readiness and show improved academic achievement on parent surveys. -Quarterly Professional Development for teachers in local schools: Throughout these professional development sessions, teachers will receive training to implement strategies that engage students in STEM activities, encourage opportunities to explore possible solutions, develop explanations for phenomena under investigation, elaborate on concepts and processes, and evaluate and assess their understanding based on evidence. STEM NOLA will serve 100 teachers and educational leaders through these professional development workshops. Ninety percent of these participants will report greater confidence and skill with STEM instruction on pre and post survey and that they are integrating high-quality STEM experiences into their curriculum and their students are expressing greater interest in STEM. If successful, STEM NOLA’s DoD supported programming will positively impact DoD capabilities by improving and expanding the talent pool for STEM-based careers within the DoD. STEM NOLA’s programming will achieve this through high-quality educational programming that provides underrepresented and military-connected families with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in DoD-based STEM careers while also improving teacher’s ability to provide high-quality STEM instruction with the K-12 educational system.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jul 09, 2021
- Source ID
- HQ00342010043
Entities
People
- Calvin Mackie
Organizations
- Office of the Secretary of Defense
- Washington Headquarters Services