STEM Outreach Programs for Communities

At one Virginia high school, learning science isn’t limited to textbooks or labs — it’s happening under the hood. Students in an automotive technology program are applying physics, engineering, and problem-solving skills to bring donated vehicles back to life. From understanding combustion and electrical systems to testing safety and efficiency, every repair becomes a real-world lesson in applied science. But the impact goes further. Once the cars are road-ready, they’re gifted to single mothers who need dependable transportation. Research consistently shows that reliable mobility improves job stability, school attendance, and access to healthcare — making a vehicle a powerful tool for social well-being. This program proves how STEM education, when paired with empathy, can create measurable change in a community. Students gain technical expertise, confidence, and a deeper understanding of how science can directly improve lives. Education with purpose. Skills with impact. ✨

I’m Anishinaabe, and I founded a charity that brings free technology education focused in robotics to Indigenous youths like me. Here’s why STEM for us by us matters: Native high school students are 237% more likely to drop out of school than white students and underperform in math (National Caucus of Native American State Legislators). We aren’t represented in the classroom… or curriculum. Only 9% of rural Native households have personal computers and even fewer have Internet access (National Congress of American Indians). The opportunities that do exist are hard to access. 80% of high schools located on reservations do not offer Computer Science courses (Kapor Foundation). We are often thought of last for STEM programs. Because of those statistics, it makes sense that Indigenous peoples make up only 0.4% of the engineering workforce (Northern Arizona University). Such a small number! Throughout our history, Indigenous communities have demonstrated a legacy of scientific inquiry and innovation. However, due to centuries of colonization and ongoing oppression, we have been unable to advocate for ourselves effectively within technology on our own land. Tech skills can help us solve the problems that we see around us and help us advocate for tech for good and advocate against tech being used to harm us. That’s why I make robots to youth for free to teach digital literacy skills through my organization The STEAM Connection. That’s why I make language revitalization robots called SkoBots. And it’s why I advocate for our youth to have the skills they need to do whatever they want! We deserve to do more than just survive, but also to thrive! Learn more at www.steamconnection.org

There’s a significant software development skills gap in Colorado and Wyoming - and the NSF ENGINES: Colorado-Wyoming Engine is laser-focused on closing it. Our focus on closing the software skills gap is aligned with the Council on Competitiveness’s recent report outlining 7 key pillars for driving U.S. Competitiveness. I’d like to highlight Pillar 6, “Empowering a Skilled Workforce,” in this post. In alignment with the Council’s recommendations and Pillar 6, we’ve launched three key initiatives in Wyoming to build a stronger, more future-ready workforce: 🤖4-H STEM Robotics Program - We’ve invested $200,000 to deliver robotics kits and instruction through 4-H, reaching 80 middle school students, particularly in ag-tech communities. This program leverages a trusted national partner to spark an early interest in STEM through simple, engaging exposure to robotics principles. 🧑🏫Advanced Software Development Training - We’ve added $400,000 to the existing Wyoming Innovation Partnership, enabling 28 individuals to gain critical software development skills and close the tech talent gap. 🖥️Microsoft 365/Power BI Certification Program - This is a $260,000 program that will train 80 individuals with in-demand skills, forming the foundation for a stackable certification pathway in tech and data analytics. These programs are the first steps in a broader strategy to empower the region’s workforce. But we know there’s more to do. We’re actively exploring ways to expand our impact, including deeper K-12 STEM initiatives and additional partnerships to strengthen tech education pipelines. After all, advancing a region’s competitiveness starts by investing in its people. Building a skilled, adaptable workforce isn’t just part of the equation - it’s the foundation for regional competitiveness and long-term economic growth.

In The White House this week, educators convened in the Indian Treaty Room for the Rural Tech Project (https://lnkd.in/eEKrjuZm). This U.S. Department of Education program discovers, funds, and learns how rural communities are playing to their strengths in incorporating STEM into highschoolers’ lives while also contributing to the technical needs of the emerging American workforce. It was humbling to be in the room. “When rural communities thrive, the nation thrives” – this mantra I saw evident. Several observations: 🐝Honeybees teach us about nature, business, and tech → Ravenna Public Schools in Michigan are working with bees as ‘business partners’. Students care for the bees, write software and wire together hardware to monitor hive health, and learn the challenges of running a business while selling honey in their community.  🤖Without intervention, 77% of high school graduates earn certificates that align with *negative growth* jobs → iLead Academy in Kentucky and Louisa County Public Schools in Virginia recognized this, rebuilding their CompSci education via tight feedback loops with regional employers. Now students are getting jobs in the field (with salaries that are nearly double!) or are headed into higher ed.  🛩️Students value math once they see its relevance → Woodlake High School in California made a math course from scratch called “Math for Aviation” and student engagement is spiking. Math-for-x is great for students to realize math is pretty cool. Partnering with regional companies and colleges, students are earning college credit *in high school* and choosing to pursue aviation studies, from piloting to mechanical work, for uncrewed systems and for general aviation. 🧑🏫There are states in which *zero* new CompSci teachers are being produced… so how do you ‘teach the teachers’ → Louisa County Public Schools identifies smart, engaging teachers outside of the CompSci field, gives them time, funding, and support to learn foundational concepts, and then let them loose in the classroom with a robust curriculum. 🏘️Students love solving community challenges → Premont Independent School Dst in Texas created a startup incubator program that allows students to learn about technology while solving real-world community problems. Five rural schools pooled their resources to create academies in nextgen medicine, defense, STEM discovery, and education. How can you get involved? Learn from the DOE’s outcomes and templates.  DOE shares its rural programs at https://lnkd.in/epwq4hfg Engage with your educators. Find the teachers who have student rapport. Gift, grant, and help those educators teach others how to ‘level up’ Support the Office of Science and Technology Policy. There is much we can do to improve education in America. It is wonderful to see underserved communities passionately and fastidiously building the next leaders of our nation.

🚀 Moving Beyond "Random Acts of STEMness": How Penn State’s CSATS is Shaping the Future Workforce Traditional, siloed STEM education isn't enough to prepare students for an AI-driven, automated world. We need to move away from "random acts of STEMness"—isolated, flashy experiments—and toward authentic, real-world convergence learning. That is exactly what the Penn State Center for Science in the Schools (CSATS) is achieving. As a dedicated "broader impacts" unit, CSATS bridges the gap between cutting-edge university research and K-12 classrooms, transforming high-level science, agriculture, and engineering into real-world career workforce development. Here are a few powerful ways CSATS is moving the needle: The National STEM Teacher Corps: Supported by a $5M National Science Foundation (NSF) grant under the Chips and Science Act, CSATS is retooling and elevating regional educators to prepare students for the age of AI. AI Learning & Listening Tour: Collaborating with the Pennsylvania Department of Education to bring Penn State AI and policy researchers directly to K-12 administrators and educators across the state. Research Experience for Teachers (RET): Embedding classroom teachers directly into Penn State research laboratories for seven weeks over the summer, allowing them to bring authentic lab mindsets back to their students. Hands-on Engineering Challenges: Powering initiatives like the Pennsylvania Energy Challenge and KidWind, where students design wind turbines and test them in engineering wind tunnels. "We need to prepare our students for their future, and not from our past." — Jeff Remington, STEM Outreach Liaison at CSATS By focusing on project-based, regionalized learning, CSATS ensures that education aligns with local workforce demands—whether it’s AI in Pittsburgh, pharmaceuticals in Philadelphia, or manufacturing and agriculture across the state. Let's stop climbing isolated ladders and start teaching students how to collaborate and navigate the complex mountains of tomorrow. 🏔️ 🎧 Want to hear the full breakdown? Check out the discussion on the Wired for STEM Podcast https://lnkd.in/g9rUmR3U #STEMEducation #WorkforceDevelopment #FutureOfWork #HigherEd #CSATS #PennState #ProjectBasedLearning #AIEducation

14% of the world’s top tech talent comes from one state—and it isn’t California. Michigan sent 85 teams to the FIRST Robotics World Finals in Houston this year. That’s more than CA and TX combined. We recruit our next basketball players out of middle school. It’s time we started treating our engineers like sports stars. At The School at Marygrove, they don't just send kids to the world stage—they clap them out like they’re headed to the Final Four. Watching this video, one student’s words hit home: "It's a blessing being clapped out by all these people…I wish people understood—if you took a chance on a kid from Detroit, they would succeed and do just as good as people in other communities." Leon P. and the Motor City Alliance have been instrumental in changing the culture around STEM in Metro Detroit. The organization supports over 150 teams in the Detroit area with financial support, technical support, mentorship and internship opportunities. Leading the charge are three authentically Detroit teams: 📍 K9.0 Robotics (8280) | The School at Marygrove - the first Detroit Public Schools Community District to qualify for Worlds in 18 years. 📍 Kinematic Wolves (5577) | Detroit Cristo Rey High School in Southwest Detroit. 📍 Robocubs (1701) | University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy. With 531 active First teams, Michigan is a founder factory. These students raise capital, build high-performance products under impossible deadlines, and pivot in real-time. This isn't just a hobby; it’s an economic engine. 📉 According to NSBE Professionals | National Society of Black Engineers and SHPE Detroit Professional: Black and Latino adults make up ~31% of the U.S. population but only ~7-8% of the STEM workforce. In Detroit, this isn’t just about robots—it’s about economic mobility. It is one of the reasons SHPE and NSBE are creating chapters in high school. Maridy Mazaira, Martez Coleman Jr from FANUC America Corporation and Jamal Longwood General Motors will be the first to tell you that Math and science education and community were critical to their professional success. Black Girl MATHgic is working in this space and CODE313 is running free STEM camps this summer in Metro Detroit. Together, we are creating pathways for high schoolers to intern at startups at Newlab and TechTown Detroit for college students and professionals to come back and mentor at Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation and Michigan Engineering Zone. For young people and professionals to learn about drone technology with Schoolcraft College and go onto work in industry at Birdstop, SkySpecs or DMR Technologies, LLC Michigan Economic Development Corporation Michigan Unmanned Aerial Systems Consortium Black Tech Saturdays Compass Detroit Right to Start Women in Defense Michigan Chapter Detroit Manufacturing Systems (DMS) The Ideal Group, Inc. Put your network to work at the Motor City Gala on May 20th. Details below👇🏽

How do we prepare today’s young minds to solve tomorrow’s greatest challenges? Enter Empowering Young Minds – a collaborative initiative igniting curiosity in STEM and AI across Malaysia, India, and Singapore. Solve Education! Foundation and Micron Foundation are teaming up to drive tech access and prove that innovation isn’t a privilege; it’s a right. Over the next three years, 10,000+ students in these three key markets will have the opportunity to explore robotics, coding, and AI through virtual projects and in-person camps, where creativity meets technology. But here’s the bigger picture: It’s more than gadgets and equations. It’s about preparing today’s youth for a world where AI is as fundamental as reading, and where their ideas could solve the toughest global challenges. Micron’s vision? To build communities where tech bridges gaps, not widens them. Bridging divides so that a student in a rural classroom has the same potential as one in a city lab. I’m so grateful to be part of initiatives that truly believe in young people’s potential to innovate, connect, and lead. Let’s rally behind that future! #MicronFoundation #SolveEducation #Education #AI #STEM 

I am thrilled to announce our partnership with the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation to launch a brand new STEM education outreach program for primary school children in the Tottenham area. This kicks off in April and aims to boost the children’s STEM skills across energy efficiency, robotics, and sustainability. Schneider Electric’s STEM ambassadors will support the learning in person. Such initiatives dovetail perfectly with our drive to invest in early careers and the local communities in the UK where we do business. Please check-out our Making an Impact podcast featuring Marc Leckie👋, CEO of the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation. Marc talks about the important work the Foundation does, the importance of the Club fostering strong community ties and how it connects fans’ passion for football with meaningful causes. Thank you to the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club team for being Impact Makers and truly making a difference in your local community. It’s an honor to support you on this journey. Find out more: http://spr.ly/6049LttJN #STEM #Education #Innovation #Sustainability #ImpactMaker #THFCFoundation Check out the full episode of Making an Impact with Marc Leckie here: http://spr.ly/6040LMhXA

Empowering Through Education: A Path to Equality and Innovation   Today, on United Nations International Education Day, I reflect on the immense potential of education to transform lives and thus drive sustainable progress. Together with #Siemens India, we launched the #STEM Education for Innovation: Experimento India initiative. This project addresses critical challenges in education, particularly for students in underserved communities.   Through this initiative:   📌 Students gain access to locally adapted Open Educational Resources (#OER) that make complex topics like climate change and #AI accessible – even in areas with limited connectivity.  📌 Computer labs empower young girls to break gender barriers and envision their futures as scientists, teachers, or entrepreneurs. 📌 Empower students to innovate with STEM knowledge to tackle local challenges by developing sustainable solutions.    Quality education is the key to achieving gender equality, breaking cycles of poverty, and fostering resilient, inclusive societies. As we celebrate the power of learning, let us continue to ensure that every student, regardless of their background, has the opportunity to thrive in today’s world – and to shape tomorrow’s.   📖 Read more about Experimento India and the inspiring stories of its impact in my newest blog on Foundations Platform F20: https://lnkd.in/dgXKuB_v   Dr Anantharaman Subramaniyan, Anees Mohammed, Sivakumar S, Sharon Gonsalves, Oishi Halder, Dr. Barbara Denise Filtzinger, Rajat Bagga, Jagori Dhar, Julia Kirchweger Madhav Chavan, Rukmini Banerji , Pratham Education Foundation   #InternationalEducationDay #STEM #EducationForAll #SocialImpact #SiemensStiftung