Other Speakers-

Carla Emanuele-Giza, New York Academy of Sciences, Associate Director of Education

Yamilee Toussaint, STEM from Dance, Founder and CEO

Presentation Title: Innovative Ways to Sustain STEM Interests and Career Paths for Girls

Abstract: Despite efforts, a sizable gap and a leaky pipeline still persists for girls to continue their interests in STEM majors and career retention. Inequities in pay, treatment and male dominated opportunity-sharing still plague numerous education and corporate sectors in the US. In order to remain competitive in the STEM global market, all innovative minds need to be acknowledged and given an equal platform to excel. Organizations like the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum’s, the New York Academy of Sciences and STEM from Dance acknowledge and utilize their specific skill sets and knowledge-base to provide participants with unique opportunities and perspectives to excel in STEM areas and other components of educational development. Each program identifies overlapping as well as unique attributes that their audiences need to build out and create accessible, dynamic and often completely free programming to assist our next generation in building essential skills. By focusing on leadership, community-minded engagement, professional communication skills, self-efficacy and accountability, these three NY-based programs have been able to impact young women, especially girls and women of color, all over the world to truly generate a global network of STEM-centered students who are prepared and energized to change the world. The next logical step in our dynamic collaboration is to continue to grow the overlapping outreach across communities and introduce young women to the concept and importance of cross-collaboration with our example. We see students fully grasping the availability of mentorship and guidance as a tool for success and seamlessly working their way from program to program throughout their formative years (middle school through high school), eventually landing in a position where they themselves choose to continue the mentorship cycle by supporting programs like ours.

Biography: Shihadah “Shay Saleem” is senior museum educator and co-founder of GOALS for Girls at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. Shay obtained her B.S. in geology at Alfred University and her M.S. in marine geomorphology at the University of South Florida. As a graduate student in Florida, she was a mentor for two years at the Oceanography Camp for Girls. Yamilee Toussaint is the Founder and CEO of STEM from Dance. She earned her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT and her M.S. in Education from Pace University. She is also an avid, life-long dancer of many styles. Carla Y. Emanuele is the Associate Director of Education at the New York Academy of Sciences. She designed and oversees two virtual mentorship programs for high school students in STEM and has worked with over 600 students all over the globe to date. She has a B.A. in Theatre Arts from Drew University and has a background in alternative education spaces.

Presentation Title: Carnegie STEM Excellence Pathway – Journey to STEM Success

Abstract: Designed to help the widest possible range of school districts and schools adopt best practices in STEM education, the Pathway includes:a process and tools for assessing current STEM programming and creating a practical plan for improvement; a guide to develop specific steps that a school or district can take to improve STEM education; supports for teacher professional development and district-to-district mentoring; and recognition for schools that are embracing and moving toward effective STEM education. One facet of the Carnegie STEM Excellence Pathway is a Self-Evaluation Rubric, through which participating schools and school districts first evaluate themselves in six STEM learning components: Teacher Qualifications and Development, Curriculum, Instructional Practices, Assessment and Demonstration of Skills, Family Engagement, and Real-World Connections. Within each component, there are Priority Areas with specific criteria and descriptions for levels of performance. After rating themselves on each of these, the school or district selects up to three Priority Areas and then formulates a realistic Action Plan in those areas. Through periodic reassessment and repetition of this process, schools and districts can progress to higher levels of STEM education excellence. This cycle is beneficial to all regardless of their current STEM offerings. The Pathway fosters thinking about long-term, strategic goals with a focus on continuous growth. It helps identify the tenets of quality STEM education and then implement them. The Pathway is non-punitive. Instead, it’s envisioned as a long-term, goal-oriented, encouraging approach. Learn first-hand through testimonials about how the Pathway is making an impact on schools across the country.

Biography: Jason Brown, Senior Director of Science and Education at Carnegie Science Center, has an undergraduate degree in physics from Hobart College in New York, a Pennsylvania teaching certificate in physics, general science, and earth sciences, an MBA, a Master’s Certificate in Educational Technologies and New Literacies, and is a certified Project Management Professional®. During his eleven years in the classroom, he taught high school science (physics, geology, astronomy, environmental science, Project Lead The Way) and middle school technology, as well as serving as an Assistant Professor in the Construction Management and Architecture programs at the State University of New York. He also spent six years as a builder and residential construction project manager with a focus on building science, energy efficiency and sustainable building practices. Furthermore, he has developed and led professional learning opportunities in the areas of technology integration, behavior management, STEM Education best-practices, and the utilization of online and digital resources in instruction. He currently oversees all of Carnegie Science Center’s educational initiatives, including student, teacher, district, and early learner programs, as well as the Fab Lab Carnegie Science Center makerspace. He also participates in Science Center content creation and the development of overall educational strategy.

Presentation Title: Beebots: Coding and Integration K-2

Abstract: The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate coding using Beebots as well as give examples of how Beebots can be integrated into the curriculum to reinforce skills. The objective of this presentation is that teachers would feel comfortable using the Beebots to teach basic coding as well as brainstorm and practice ideas to use them in the classroom to reinforce skills. Beebots are a great, easy-to-use teaching tool. The hands-on robot is easy for young children to use to learn basic coding skills. They can be used as a motivator to introduce or enhance basic skills in a variety of subject areas. Beebots can be integrated into the curriculum as a tool to teach directionality, sequencing, problem solving, letter and sight word review, number sense, map skills and life cycles. My presentation fits into the Create to Learn – Coding in the Classroom topic. Included in the workshop is an “unplugged” activity to introduce coding, basic coding instruction using the Beebot, practice using the Beebot in several curriculum areas and brainstorming ways they can use this in their classroom setting.

Biography: My name is Janice Rickey. I am the STEM Coordinator at a Title I PreK-5 magnet school in Wilmington, NC. I have also had 17 years in the K-2 classroom as a teacher. I love to make learning fun and engaging. I believe that children can learn cooperation, problem solving, perseverance and communication skills with hands-on learning. After I teach the children how to code using the Beebot, we use him to reinforce skills that they are already learning but in a fun, engaging way.