The Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy

THE DINAH WHIPPLE STEAM ACADEMY GIVES STUDENTS AN EXPLORATION OF PRE-ENGINEERING AND THE BLACK EXPERIENCE

Dinah Whipple founded New Hampshire’s first school for Black children in Portsmouth circa 1806. While the formerly enslaved Granite State native became a leader in the community and advocate for education, she was also an inspiration for future generations, including the Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy (DWSA).

The immersive educational program explores science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM), as well as the Black experience.

“The goal of this program is to help funnel underrepresented demographics into the STEAM orbit so they can see firsthand what they can be,” says DWSA program lead instructor and curriculum designer, Dzijeme Ntumi. “By partnering with the University of New Hampshire (UNH), we are able to start kids at 12 or 13 years old and take them through high school. Students learn about basic engineering principles and disciplines by completing a variety of hands-on activities like building their own windmill or creating a scale model of the Three Gorges Dam, which grades 7-10 will be able to n BY EMILY HEIDT

do this year. It’s a wonderful opportunity for all students to be able to delve deeper into engineering while also discussing the Black experience in this country.”

The Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy is made possible by Appledore Marine Engineering’s funding and desire to increase the diversity in the field of engineering and choice to dedicate resources to create more of a balance within a system filled with inequities.

The program was a perfect fit to be offered through UNH Tech Camp, which provides dynamic and experiential summer programs for middle and high schoolers.

“Tech Camp was founded in 2007 by Civil Engineering Department professor Robert Henry as a way to explore the disciplines in science and engineering, and to make a career in these fields accessible to all students, especially those who are underrepresented,” says UNH Tech Camp faculty director, Carmela Amato-Wierda. “DWSA was designed as an intensive, residential, one-week program on the UNH campus, and during the academic year, students go on field-related field trips to engage in problem-solving as well as social activities. Our hope is to recruit students who will remain with the program until they matriculate into higher education, especially the engineering disciplines.”

Ntumi believes that not only is it important that students stay with the program so they can “stay and play” in New Hampshire’s future workforce, but also develop a lasting community that grows with them.

“We want students to create a sense of belonging in STEAM through their peer learning community in the DWSA,” says Amato-Wierda. “Developing a ‘home’ or STEAM identity by participating in activities and talking with mentors who are UNH engineering alumni and represent their backgrounds is crucial to their experience both in and out of the classroom.”

Ntumi experienced the impact of growing up in such a community, and through the DWSA, she’s able to give the same experience back to its students. “The cultural differences growing up in New Hampshire were big,” she says. “I didn’t find a sense of family until after college, so I want to be able to give them that opportunity now. Many students come from all over the state and are able to talk to friends from camp that have that same cultural connection. They are able to find their family and resources, and I am able to reflect back to them how smart and capable they are.” While the program itself is small with only nine students last year due to the pandemic and 20 students this year (with nine of them returning from last year), Ntumi never underestimates the power that a few can have on many to make a difference.

“After reading ‘101 Things Everyone Should Know About African-American History’ last year, one student came away from learning about Emmett Till with profound questions like, ‘You look to adults for safety, why would someone do that to a kid our age?,’” she recalls. “I got to watch everything start to click for them. It’s inspiring and encouraging to me to know that the nine students in our first class, along with all those attending this summer, will make a change, and from there my hope is that it will trickle out into our surrounding communities. I am grateful for the opportunity to have a positive impact on the future of these students and all those around them.”

Learn more about the Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy at ceps.unh.edu/outreach/tech-camp/programs/dinah-whipple-steam-academy. The program is full for 2022, but applications are open for 2023.

The Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy is made possible by Appledore Marine Engineering’s funding and desire to increase the diversity in the field of engineering and choice to dedicate resources to create more of a balance within a system filled with inequities.