Supporting STEM in Rural Contexts

Time: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. Central Time

Location: Virtual

Description: REL Midwest hosted a webinar on strategies to support science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) learning opportunities in rural contexts. The webinar featured Dr. Haidee Williams, senior technical assistance consultant at American Institutes for Research, who presented research on supports that have shown promise for increasing student interest and pursuit of STEM fields. David Burns, director of STEM learning networks for Battelle Education, and Kelly Gaier Evans, STEM relationship manager for Battelle Education, discussed the unique context to implementing STEM programs in rural districts. Burns and Evans also discussed rural community characteristics that benefit STEM implementation and highlighted an example of a successful STEM intervention currently used in rural Ohio schools. Dr. Sally Pardue, director of the Millard Oakley STEM Center at Tennessee Tech University, discussed an intervention that grounds STEM in the local context of rural Tennessee communities.

Speakers:

• Haidee Williams, Ph.D., American Institutes for Research
• David Burns, Battelle Education
• Kelly Gaier Evans, Battelle Education
• Sally Pardue, Ph.D., Tennessee Tech University