In December 2021, STEM SENC awarded 14 Mini-Grants to North Carolina educators to support the implementation of innovative STEM programs for students. The awards were presented to teachers in Brunswick, Columbus, Duplin, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender and Scotland Counties. Each awardee received up to $400 for the purchase of supplies, equipment, and/or food, plus a $100 teacher stipend for personal use.
An award from the Anonymous Trust that STEM SENC received for participation in the ReCONNECT Rural & Urban cohort at NC State’s Institute of Emerging Issues provided funding for the mini-grants. STEM SENC was one of five community initiatives selected for participation in the three-year, six-forum series focusing on bringing North Carolina and North Carolinians together across lines of division. Selected communities are actively working on efforts to address shared challenges, and promote and more effectively leverage interconnections between different community types.
Click here to read an article about Leap into Science in the Watson Chronicle. Click HERE to read an article about the STEM SENC Mini-Grants Celebration.
In an effort to bridge the digital divide, STEM SENC partnered with Kramden Institute to provide FREE home computers to 360 students in grades 3-12 in New Hanover County, Pender County, and Robeson County schools.
The computers were installed with an open source operating system and came pre-installed with over 100 applications including an offline encyclopedia with over 50,000 articles. The students received training about how to set-up and use their new computers.
In a national competition, the joint application submitted by STEM SENC, CESTEM, The North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center, STEM East, STEM West, and the State Library of NC, and supported by the NC Center for Afterschool Programs and the North Carolina Science Network, was accepted to join the Leap into Science Cohort 3.
Developed by The Franklin Institute Science Museum and supported by the National Girls Collaborative Project, Leap into Science is a series of evidence-based curriculum and training resources that integrate open-ended science activities with children’s books for children ages 3-10 and their families. The program designed to take place in community settings like libraries, museums, and out-of-school time programs to engage underserved audiences in accessible and familiar settings.
Leap into Science is scaling nationally through a train-the-trainer model, by establishing state leadership teams who will disseminate Leap into Science programs, targeting underserved rural and urban communities. Learn more about the program.
STEM SENC, STEM EAST, STEM WEST, and the Smoky Mountains STEM Collaborative are partnering with the NC Center for Afterschool Programs on a Moonshot Catalyst Award to engage more girls and underserved youth in deeper STEM learning.
The award will support the NC Flight Crew program--a year-long STEM leadership development program for 10 girls and non-binary students in grades 6-12 from across our state. The program will provide students with opportunities to learn more about STEM and STEM careers, develop their leadership skills, and give back to their communities.
Launched in 2020, the Million Girls Moonshot is a transformative nationwide initiative that is inspiring and preparing the next generation of innovators by engaging millions more girls in STEM learning opportunities through afterschool and summer programs over five years. The Million Girls Moonshot is the premier initiative of the STEM Next Opportunity Fund, an organization committed to expanding exceptional STEM learning opportunities outside of the classroom for all children everywhere.
STEM SENC was one of five community initiatives selected by the Institute for Emerging Issues to participate in ReCONNECT Rural and Urban, part of a three-year, six-forum series focusing on bringing North Carolina and North Carolinians together across lines of division.
Selected communities are actively working on efforts to address shared challenges, and promote and more effectively leverage interconnections between different community types.
In a national competition, STEM SENC was one of twelve applicants selected to join Cohort 4 of the STEM Learning Ecosystems Community of Practice. A STEM learning ecosystem encompasses schools, community settings such as after-school and summer programs, science centers and museums, and informal experiences at home and in a variety of environments that together constitute a rich array of learning opportunities for young people.
The STEM Learning Ecosystems seek to nurture collaboration among a variety of partners with the same goal: helping students develop important skills and engagement in science, technology, engineering and math. Being a member of this initiative enables STEM SENC to connect with other ecosystems in the U.S. and abroad to improve education in science, technology, engineering and math.