After a year on hiatus due to the pandemic, we're thrilled to bring back our STEM Grants for out-of-school time programs! Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence and Cox Communications will award a total of $15,000 in grants ranging from $500 to $1,500 to programs that incorporate or expand the use of STEM based learning in their programs. Applications will be reviewed by an independent judging panel with extra points given to programs that have signed the Make It Count Pledge and who have submitted an Assessment using the AzQSAT. Additional consideration will be given to programs that promote equity.

AzCASE is a part of the Million Girls Moonshot, helping out-of-school time programs as they increase the quality of STEM learning opportunities for all young people, especially for underserved and underrepresented youth.

The Moonshot seeks to re-imagine who can engineer, who can build, who can make. It will inspire and prepare the next generation of innovators by engaging one million more girls in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) learning opportunities through afterschool and summer programs over the next 5 years. 

Every state is asking afterschool and summer programs to share more about how they do STEM. Please join this important effort! Your answers will help us to better understand how we can best support afterschool and summer programs statewide. The survey should take 5-10 minutes to complete. 

Everyone who completes the survey before April 30th will have exclusive access to a webinar on engaging kids in hands-on engineering activities from home. Everyone who responds will be entered into a drawing for a $100 gift certificate.

Repost from Afterschool Snack

President Joe Biden was sworn into office on January 20, marking the beginning of a four-year term with the pandemic still front and center in the eyes of policymakers and the general public. The first steps for President Biden and Congress have been aimed at getting a handle on the pandemic, which was outlined in the president’s American Rescue Plan on January 15. But for STEM education, particularly informal and afterschool STEM education, there will be a need to expand the role these programs play in providing the hands-on learning experiences to supplement the school day.