|
|
AUGUST UPDATE
The InterMountain Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Launch Pilot (IM STEM)
|
|
This final IM STEM Network meeting will focus on strategies for recruiting women and girls into Advanced Manufacturing pathways and will include effective programs from the IM STEM states. In preparation for the IM STEM Network Meeting go to NAPE’s Make the Future site for educators and student microsite for great educator resources, videos and student social media recruiting materials.
|
|
We want to highlight your program |
|
Learning about programs and initiatives around the network is a key benefit to being part of the IM STEM community. If you would like to have your program highlighted in a future IM STEM newsletter or potentially showcased at a network meeting, please click here to enter your information. |
|
What's going on In the network? |
|
Communications and Resource Sharing |
|
The Communication and Resource Sharing group asks that you get the most out of network membership by engaging in conversation with each other on our social media channels, including our LinkedIn group (IM STEM Network) and Twitter (@imstemequity). We have also created a form on the IMSTEM website where you can enter information about your program, so we can share it across the network in future IM STEM newsletters.
|
|
Our asset mapping team is currently working with Nevada to develop an asset map that shows where STEM programming exists. We are currently adding data to our beta site. Some states already have maps, including Idaho, Wyoming, and New Mexico. Any other questions about the IMSTEM Asset map initiative, please contact Kathleen Fitzpatrick kfitzpatrick@napequity.org.
|
|
Effective Practice Scaling |
|
The Effective Practices Workgroup has developed a Rubric for Evaluating Programs to Broaden Participation in STEM. Click here to access it.
|
|
This workgroup continues to monitor NAPE’s professional development efforts in the six states. NAPE released the Equity in Youth Apprenticeship Programs toolkit, a free NAPE resource made possible through our work with the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeships (PAYA). The toolkit examines three drivers for ensuring youth apprenticeship programs lead to equitable opportunities and outcomes: access, belonging, and continuous improvement. See the latest blog. For more information about NAPE’s PD contact Kathleen Fitzpatrick at kfitzpatrick@napequity.org.
|
|
What's going on Around the network? |
|
Colorado
The Women’s Foundation of Colorado’s Research Pinpoints the Most Effective Solutions
Check out the great research on The Women’s Foundation of Colorado website. Information on education and workforce gaps affecting Colorado women, the Colorado Economic Self-Sufficiency Standard and reports on the status of women in STEM are some of the great research reports available. Research over the past decade has demonstrated consistently that companies that hire and retain a more inclusive workforce benefit in many ways, including improved operational and financial performance and increased innovation. Yet, while women make up 46 percent of the total Colorado workforce, they comprise less than a third of STEM workers. And, not only do women enter STEM less often than men, they leave STEM careers more often.
|
|
Idaho
Idaho STEM Action Center Grant Opportunities
Check out all the great grant opportunities on the Idaho STEM Action Center grant application website. Grants are currently open and many upcoming grant opportunities will open in the coming months. Grants include such topics as First Robotic Rookie Team Competition, eCYBERMISSION, Idaho Science & Engineering Fairs 2020 Support, and Idaho Makers for Equity.
Idaho STEM Ecosystem Fall Convening: The STEM Action Center will be hosting virtual regional meetings on September 17th and 18th. The purpose of these meetings is to assess regional needs/assets/goals, discuss ecosystem commitment, and prep for an October 30th convening. To attend the virtual meetings, please RSVP, Idaho STEM Ecosystem September Meeting, by August 31, 2020.
Idaho State University and University of Idaho College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP)
River of Return: Watch the story created by River Newe
Sammy and Jessica Matsaw are creating cultural connections through their work with the River Newe (Shoshone for peoples), which is designed to restore Indigenous knowledge and Indigeneity, increase representation and create spaces of equity through STEM learning experiences on homelands with Shoshone-Bannocks, Indigenous, and minoritized communities on and off river. To learn more visit www.rivernewe.org and also watch them in action in the following short film, River of Return.
|
|
Nevada
Students power Nevada Help Desk to help people and businesses
|
|
New Mexico
The pandemic has highlighted the need for New Mexico to have a stable, resilient job market, and one way to accomplish that is by embracing wind energy, writes Andrew Swapp, director of the Wind Energy Technician Program at Mesalands Community College.”Our Wind Energy Technology Program gives students the chance to gain a holistic understanding of the renewable energy industry and to actually work on a turbine, preparing them for a successful career in one of our nation’s most innovative sectors." he writes. For more information go to https://www.currentargus.com/story/opinion/readers/2020/08/11/letter-editor-american-wind-week/3343746001/
|
|
Utah
Utah Trains Teachers to Deliver Amazon Courses
|
|
Wyoming
A CTE and STEM based mobile lab will maximize usage and provide exposure to thousands of youth in Natrona County (NCSD). The concept behind the design is to bring equipment that is generally fixed in place at secondary schools to youth in their setting. The primary purpose of the trailer is to provide young students with exposure to CTE, career advising and delivery of hands-on technical modules. This trailer will travel to middle and elementary schools in Casper and rural parts of the region, where staff and students will provide hands-on experiences aligned with STEM concepts. This trailer will be outfitted with equipment like drones,lasers, plasma cutters and mobile welders to use while teaching young students about emerging technologies, careers and the trades. When not in use as a recruitment lab, it will be used daily at the Pathways Innovation Center for students from all four of NCSD’'s high schools. To learn more contact Michelle Aldrich, Ph.D., Career Technical Education State Director, Wyoming Department of Education.
|
|
STEM Equity News, Events, & Resources |
|
General Topics
NSF INCLUDES Special Report to the Nation II
NSF INCLUDES (Inclusion Across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science) is a comprehensive national initiative designed to enhance U.S. leadership in discoveries and innovations by focusing on diversity, inclusion and broadening participation in STEM at scale.Our very own, IM STEM is one of the NSF INCLUDES Design Development Launch Pilot grants. The new NSF Director, Sethuraman Panchanathan, issued this second report to the nation, that details the network and spotlights the alliances, federal partnerships, including the Department, and the benefits of joining the INCLUDES National Network. A recent blog by Sylvia James, NSF Deputy Assistant Director, Education and Human Resources Directorate, outlines some of the successes of the INCLUDES network and an NSF report provides statistical information about the participation of women, minorities and persons with disabilities in science and engineering.
IF/THEN “IF we support a woman in STEM, THEN she can change the world,” says Lyda Hill, founder of Lyda Hill Philanthropies.
The IF/THEN® Initiative is designed to activate a culture shift among young girls and introduce them to STEM careers. The IF/THEN® Collection was created in partnership with the Association of Science and Technology Centers. The Collection is a growing digital library of images, videos, and other media of women in STEM fields. This library is an exciting part of the IF/THEN® Initiative's effort to inspire the next generation of girls with learning experiences that encourage their interest in STEM.
|
|
Deloitte and Ella the Engineer Provide At-Home STEM Learning Opportunities to Inspire New Generations of Female Tech Talent
Deloitte, in collaboration with The Ella Project today announced the launch of a virtual reading series of Deloitte-sponsored "Ella the Engineer" comic books alongside free, interactive toolkits. Together, the story time readings and toolkits provide a fully immersive educational experience, as parents continue to take on the role of at-home educators. The comic books are read by a trio of Deloitte women leaders, who are also featured in the books as main characters. They share the stories of Ella the Engineer, a fearless young girl who uses science and technology to solve problems and save the day. Click here to read more.
SNAP Pledges to Hire More Minorities, Women in Tech Roles
SNAP, the parent of photo messaging app Snapchat, pledged to double the number of minorities and women staff in its tech teams. Women represented 32.9% of Snap's global workforce in 2019, but make up only 16.1% of its tech teams, the company said in its first annual diversity report. The social media company said that gender balance within its tech teams remained low and it will double the number of women in tech roles by 2023. Click here to read more.
|
|
NIKE Announces Official Partnership and $1M Grant For Black Girls CODE
NIKE, Inc. announced a $40 million commitment to support Black initiatives in the fight against racial injustice over the next four years in a formal statement. Today, they continue their dedication by donating a $1 million grant to Black Girls CODE. Black Girls CODE, an organization dedicated to changing the narrative surrounding racial and gender diversity in STEM by educating and empowering girls and young women of color. Click here to read more.
|
|
SWEnext clubs - Getting Girls into Robotics
SWENext clubs are a way for women and girls to work on projects that use engineering to help people in their community. Aspiring Biomedical Engineer and astronaut, Kaitlyn Ludlam, speaks on advocating for girls in STEM and more importantly in robotics. Click here to read more
|
|
Diversity is Essential in STEM. Here’s How People Are Organizing “Good Trouble” to Make a Change
In the aftermath of the George Floyd killing and subsequent Black Lives Matter protests, the cries about the systemic inequities and racism in America have been shocking, pervasive and across all sectors, including STEM Education and the STEM community. Rep. Lewis challenged us when he said: “When you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have to speak up. You have to say something; You have to do something!” Racial inequities in K-12 STEM education, the digital divide, the academic achievement gap, early childhood education, the lack of diversity in the TECH sector, and racial bias in venture capital investments are prevalent. Learn about new activism demonstrated by the everyday scientist, researcher and academic during the Black Lives Matter Protest to address these inequities.Click here to read more.
|
|
10 Tips for Motivating, Inspiring and Preparing Girls to Pursue STEM
Despite the best efforts to mentor and encourage teens, without positive and early exposure to STEM, girls can miss out altogether on developing a rich and rewarding STEM career. Getting girls interested in STEM at an early age is critical in solving the gender imbalance in the STEM fields. Click here to read more.
|
|
Honoring the Whole Student: Developing Space for Native American Students in STEM by Supporting Complex Identities
|
|
Grant Funding
Rural Tech Challenge to Advance Technology Education
The U.S. Department of Education recently announced a $600,000 challenge for rural high schools and local educational agencies to propose technology education programs that use competency-based distance learning. The Rural Tech Project will select up to five finalists. Each will receive an equal share of the $500,000 cash prize pool, on-the-ground assistance, and access to virtual resources. One grand prize winner will receive an additional $100,000. Proposals are due October 8, 2020.
Upcoming STEM Events
Gender Equity in Online STEM Learning
September 2, 2020; 12:00 PM Pacific / 3:00 PM Eastern (60 min)
When engaging girls in STEM there are many strategies and practices that support gender equity and access, but how do those strategies work in online or hybrid learning environments? This webinar will explore what works for girls from preschool and early elementary to middle school and high school, potential adaptations, and new ideas to consider when teaching girls STEM online. Participants will learn from experts in the field including Amanda Sullivan, Ph.D., an Early Childhood STEAM and EdTech Specialist, and Lecia Barker, Ph.D., a Senior Research Scientist from the National Center for Women and Information Technology. Register.
2020 Champions for Change: Leading a Backbone Organization for Collective Impact Online Workshop September 15-17, 2020.
Champions for Change is a workshop designed specifically for those in the beginning/early stages of their collective impact work. We'll dive into the different roles that the backbone team can take within their initiative, including how to best support communities and move forward during these current times of crisis and change. Register.
SciFest; September 16-23, 2020
It is just under a month away from the launch of the USA Science & Engineering Festival FIRST EVER virtual Festival, SciFest All Access! At SciFest All Access, attendees of all ages will access 100+ virtual exhibits featuring hands-on and interactive STEM content, view inspiring performances on the STEM Stage, earn badges and prizes in an online scavenger hunt, and shop in the STEM Store. Register today to experience all that SciFest All Access has to offer!
ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference
Online; September 16-19, 2020
The goal of the Tapia Conferences is to bring together undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, researchers, and professionals in computing from all backgrounds and ethnicities to celebrate and promote diversity. This year's theme is "Inclusion Drives Innovation" and reminds us of the critical role that diverse perspectives play in driving innovations in computing and technology. Register.
Virtual Grace Hopper Celebration (vGHC) Online; September 26, 29-October 3, 2020
vGHC is the world's largest gathering of women technologists. Learn, network, and be inspired to work together to achieve intersectional gender and pay parity in tech. This year's theme is #TogetherWeBuild. Register.
National Career Pathways Network (NCPN) Conference Online; October 15-16, 2020
The NCPN conference is a professional development opportunity offering informative presentations, keynote speakers, and other timely information for professionals in Career Pathways, CTE, and workforce and economic development. Register.
American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) Conference
Online; October 15-17, 2020
Conference focuses on educational, professional and workforce development. The conference will include most of the traditional in-person activities through the virtual platform including networking suites, an opening ceremony, sessions for all tracks, research presentations, Indian Country's largest College and Career Fair, and so much more. As a virtual event, AISES can provide conference attendees new ways to safely network, learn, and interact with all conference attendees and presenters. Register.
Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) Conference
Online; October 19-21, 2020
ASTC is an organization of science centers and museums dedicated to furthering public engagement with science among diverse audiences. This year's theme "New Frontiers in Science, Technology, Learning, and Community Engagement toward a more Equitable Tomorrow" will explore the future of our institutions, our work, and our impact in our communities. ASTC has issued a new Rapid Call for Virtual Session Proposals that specifically address the individual, organizational, and societal challenges we are currently facing. Proposals deadline is August 22, 2020. Register.
BOOST (Best of Out-of-School Time) Conference
Palm Springs, CA; October 26-29, 2020
The BOOST conference has been rescheduled for October 2020. Participants will have the opportunity to network, participate in team-building activities, and learn about the latest trends and research in innovative and quality out-of-school time programming. Register.
ISTE Conference & Expo
Online; November 29 - December 5, 2020
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) is recognized as the most comprehensive educational technology conference in the world. To protect the health and safety of participants, ISTE20 is being transformed into ISTE20 Live, a fully virtual, immersive learning event. Participants will have the opportunity to connect with educators, presenters, and exhibitors in chats, meetups and virtual hallway conversations, as well as hands-on tool demos and peer-to-peer collaborations. Register.
|
|
Help grow the network!
Please forward this newsletter to colleagues and contacts.
|
|
IM STEM is a network of STEM educators and leaders across six states (CO, ID, NM, NV, UT, and WY) working to support STEM equity at key transition points (middle school to high school and high school to college). |
|
|
|
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1744472. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
