RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – Several North Carolina out-of-school-time programs that provide science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational opportunities to North Carolina students have received funding from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. For more than 25 years, the Fund has supported informal STEM programs in North Carolina through the Student STEM Enrichment Program (SSEP).
The SSEP supports diverse programs with a common goal: to enable primary and secondary students to participate in creative, hands-on STEM activities for K-12 students and pursue inquiry-based exploration in BWF’s home state of North Carolina. These awards provide up to $60,000 per year for three years. Since the program’s inception in 1996, BWF has awarded 201 grants totaling $33.7 million to 103 organizations that reach more than 43,000 North Carolina students.
“This year’s cadre of SSEP awards are a collective of out-of-school-time STEM enrichment programming consisting of diverse non-profit organizations,” said Alfred Mays, Director and Chief Strategist for Diversity and Education. “They are providing greater outreach opportunities with an essential sense of STEM equity, access, and opportunity for underserved and underrepresented communities.”
SSEP awards support career-oriented and practical programs intended to provide creative science enrichment activities for underserved and underrepresented students. After-school programs demonstrate value in helping to close opportunity gaps and providing students with greater access to high-quality programming. These programs must enable students to participate in hands-on STEM activities and pursue inquiry-based avenues of exploration—an educational approach that BWF believes to be an effective way to increase students’ understanding and appreciation of the scientific process. To increase academic achievement, programs must provide a well-defined structure that aligns with the school-day curriculum, well-trained staff, and student follow-up.
“The hopeful impact of these awards is for the opportunity to further student engagement based on the STEM enrichment experience,” said Mr. Mays. “Outcomes from these investments are expected to result in a student’s increased participation in broader STEM opportunities, career exploration associated with their increased enthusiasm and excitement for STEM, and interest in pursuing more formal STEM opportunities such as college and careers.”
The 2021 recipients of the Student STEM Enrichment Program are:
American Chemical Society, North Carolina Local Section
Anibal Lopes, PhD
Project SEED- Addition of Supplemental Fall and Spring Programs to research “A New Therapy for Sickle Cell Disease”
Association for the Preservation of the Eno River Valley
Hillary Rock Harrison
Eno River Association STEM Summer Camps and Year-Round Education
Duke University
David Johnston, PhD
Liftoff in ENC: A Community Collaboration to Connect Local STEM Research and Community
Elon University
Mark Enfield, PhD
Elon Explorers
Inner Banks STEM Center
Alvin D Powell
Exploring Renewable Energy Sources Using Artificial Intelligence
Kinetic Minds Incorporated
Eskabonna Enrique Henderson
Junior Scientist Academy: Building S.T.E.M. Skills Into Careers
Meredith College
Julia Kolb
PERSIST: Pipeline Enhancement to Retain Students via Inclusive STEM Training
North Carolina A&T State University
Marcia Ford Williams, PhD
NC A&T Global STEM Scholars Institute
Partnership for Appalachian Girls’ Education
Deborah Hicks-Rogoff, EdD
PAGE: Creating Innovative STEM Education for Girls in Appalachia
Project Scientist
Rebecca Sims
Hands-On STEM Club for Girls
Student U
Elena Marie Maina
Explore Fearlessly Initiative
Wake Forest University
Rebecca Alexander, PhD
Wake Forest LEAP – Lab Experiences; Academics and Professions
West Wilkes High School
Jennifer Rae LeBlanc
Securing the Future – A cryptology/cybersecurity experience for rural high school students
Wilson College of Textiles – North Carolina State University
Delisha Hinton
TEXplore – Summer Enrichment and Saturday Academy Program
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Media Contacts: Russ Campbell and Muno Sekhon at news@bwfund.org
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