Learning Science Through Research-2

In rural NH and VT, opportunities for pre-college students to perform extracurricular, authentic scientific research under the mentorship of professional scientists are extremely limited. Students face a lack of inspirational science classroom experiences in our region’s rural schools. Teachers are too under-resourced to use or develop inquiry-based STEM lessons that fit their curricula and lack the scientific equipment necessary. The NHAS will leverage its advanced STEM Center and connections with STEM communities to expand support of secondary school students in experiencing project-based science through student-centered research programs, and will support teachers in delivering inquiry-based classroom science through teacher-centered programs. We will develop summer and after-school, locally meaningful project-based research programs at the NHAS STEM Center for students in grades 6-12. We will establish satellite laboratories in rural secondary schools where students will be mentored by teachers and NHAS Scientists during the school year. We will advance our course at Colby-Sawyer College (CSC) that pairs in-service and pre-service K-12 teachers in the creation and use of inquiry-based activities, and will bolster the use of our Equipment Loan Library by sharing these Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) aligned lesson plans. We will formalize a long-term, layered, team-mentoring approach. Students in NHAS programs who are entering the 12th grade and show interest in careers as researchers, mentors, or teachers, will be offered near-peer mentor training, and employed as NHAS near-peer mentors upon graduation. These alumni, working alongside our NHAS scientists, will serve as models and ensure the students are supported in their research. The supportive relationships forged between the students and mentor teams will carry through the years that students are in the research programs and as they prepare for college applications. The NHAS will provide opportunities for students to complete the scientific process by disseminating their findings at science events such as the meetings of professional societies and the NHAS New England STEM Symposium, and by publishing their work. Parents and teachers will be supported in attending events and conferences to help them appreciate the career opportunities in STEM. With this grant, the NHAS proposes to greatly advance its support of our growing rural scientific community, where STEM professionals, schools, and teachers, advance the STEM careers of students in under-resourced rural communities.