AWARD YEAR: 2018

Elizabeth City State University 

Antonio Rook
Instructor - MSEN Director
Campus Box 951
Elizabeth City, NC 27909
Phone: 252/335-3468

Project Title: IMMERSE (Innovating, Mentoring, and Managing Emergency Response through STEM Enrichment)

The IMMERSE(Innovating, Mentoring, and Managing Emergency Response through STEM Enrichment) Program is focused on impacting rising 5th and 6th grade students by providing them career awareness and learning experiences focused on STEM skill development. STEM Faculty will concentrate on best practices, using hands-on inquiry based, student centered activities and lab experiences in STEM to create opportunities for students to grow as learners, while exposing them to the burgeoning field of Emergency Management. Rigorous and challenging classes complement the North Carolina Common Core and Essential Standards for both elementary and middle school curriculum in assisting them to have a successful transition to advanced level middle school courses. The program includes activities that incorporate self-discovery, entrepreneurship, cooperative learning, goal setting, career exploration, as well as academic and career advising. Twenty-five 5th & 6th grade students are recruited to participate in the IMMERSE Program. The selected students will be required to attend multiple Saturday sessions during the academic year and participate in a daily residential program for four weeks in the summer at Elizabeth City State University (ECSU). Students enroll in five classes; Warm-Up, Career Exploration, STEM, EM, and Project Design. The Warm-Up class focuses on skills that will improve the daily lives of students. This class highlights career attributes such as written communications, problem-solving, vocabulary development, decision making, financial literacy, grooming, and time management (study habits). IMMERSE students also enroll in a STEM and EM classes that contains enrichment lessons with the goal of preparing them for the upcoming year in their local school districts as well as enhancing their STEM skills & EM knowledge. IMMERSE students enroll in a Career Exploration class where STEM & EM professionals present and share knowledge and skills of their careers. The IMMERSE Program has a Project Design course where the students learn engineering concepts, problem solving, teamwork, graphic design, and technical applications while fostering STEM related career discussions with a focus on Emergency Management.

Learn more:  More than $150,000 Grant Funds ECSU's IMMERSE Program

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