STEM catalyst: New office will promote K-12 outreach

R-STEM office will coordinate Rice University’s STEM outreach efforts

Rice University has created the Office of STEM Engagement to support and promote its wide-ranging efforts to improve K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in Houston-area school districts.

Rice University's Office of STEM Engagement will support and promote efforts to improve K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in Houston-area school districts. Credit: W. Schoffstall/Rice University

“We serve both Rice faculty who are doing STEM outreach as well as K-12 teachers and school districts,” said Carolyn Nichol, director of Rice’s Office of STEM Engagement (R-STEM). “Much of what we do centers around making connections and communicating. We communicate with Rice faculty about how to develop their educational programs, and we communicate with school districts to find out how best to improve upon STEM education. It’s about making connections and opening doors between Rice, our partners and the educational community as a whole.”

R-STEM, which reports to Vice Provost for Research Yousif Shamoo, will work with faculty to help develop the K-12 outreach programs that are a required component of many federal research funding proposals. Shamoo said R-STEM helps directly address several of Rice’s Priorities for the New Century.

“By investing in R-STEM, Rice is taking a big-picture approach to building successful research programs,” Shamoo said. “The university is making it easier for faculty to compete in a difficult federal-funding environment, and it is magnifying the impact that Rice’s STEM programs are having in K-12 classrooms throughout our region.”

R-STEM Director Carolyn Nichol (right) has developed and led STEM outreach initiatives at Rice since 2006. Credit: W. Schoffstall/Rice University

Nichol said R-STEM will provide faculty with both pre- and post-award support, help with site-visit preparation, program design and implementation, and evaluation of outcomes and impacts.

“We can act as a single point of contact for STEM activities,” Nichol said. “That means that our faculty won’t have to approach school districts individually each time they want to set up a STEM activity. It also means that school districts, parents, students, nonprofits and other stakeholders have one place they can call to find out about STEM programs at Rice.”

Nichol is no stranger to Rice STEM activities. She came to the university in 2002 to teach bioengineering classes, and in 2006, she joined Rice’s first National Science Foundation (NSF) funded center of excellence, the Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology, to oversee an innovative STEM teacher professional development program. She has played a central role in developing a number of other Rice STEM programs, and in several cases she has worked to secure private industry funding to ensure that highly successful programs can continue after federal startup funds expire.

R-STEM will serve as a single point of contact for school districts, parents, students, nonprofits and others regarding STEM programs at Rice. Credit: W. Schoffstall/Rice University

“Rice faculty are both innovative and passionate about STEM outreach, and when they hit upon a new method or idea that works well, we want to be able to sustain that and keep it going after the federal grant runs out,” Nichol said. “We’re fortunate to be in Houston, where so many industry partners understand and value the importance of STEM education and are willing to support and sustain successful STEM programs.”

Nichol, who most recently served as director of Rice’s School Science and Technology (SST) program in the Wiess School of Natural Sciences, said R-STEM will continue to administer SST’s highly successful programs, which include:

• The Schlumberger Rice Energy Explorations Academy, a summer program that allows ninth-graders to perform experiments and have diverse learning experiences in Rice laboratories.
• The Schlumberger Rice Computer Engineering Design Academy, a summer program that encourages seventh-grade girls to become scientists and engineers through lessons involving computer-aided design and 3-D printer rapid prototyping.
• The ConocoPhillips Rice Elementary Model Science Lab, a professional development program that allows elementary school teachers to spend one day a week in intensive training throughout the year to both learn about science and explore alternative teaching methods that convey science more effectively than traditional methods.
• The Applied Math Program, an innovative professional development program that allows eighth-grade science and mathematics teachers to train as a team to better motivate students toward STEM careers.
• The Rice Excellence in Secondary Science Teaching, a professional development program conducted in partnership with the Houston Independent School District that teaches biology, physics and chemistry teachers about the latest research advances in areas like nanotechnology, biotechnology and environmental engineering.
• The NSF Nanotechnology Research Experience for Teachers, a summer internship program that allows K-12 science teachers to learn about the latest research methods and tools by working in a Rice laboratory for six weeks.