2021-22 Impact Report: STEM

STEM CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH

STEM CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH

SUMMARY

Thanks to the support provided by generous donors, the U.S. Naval Academy’s STEM Center for Education and Outreach continues to make an impact in both local and national communities. Ongoing and substantial funding creates a world of possibility for students and educators, as STEM outreach programs have a lasting and transformational impact on our youth, including those from underserved and underrepresented populations.

During the 2021–2022 academic year, the Center utilized these contributions to develop future leaders with the confidence, creativity, problem-solving skills and technological proficiency to address challenges in a constantly evolving world.

YEAR IN REVIEW:

• In June 2022, 778 rising 9th–11th graders attended the Summer STEM Program, a residential weeklong program held at the U.S. Naval Academy. USNA faculty presented highly engaging sessions in Department of Defense (DoD) technical areas across STEM disciplines.

• 621 female students participated in fall 2021 and spring 2022 Girls Only STEM events. Events included middle and high school programs, including a new High School Biotechnology Day. All events were held in person except for the fall 2021 Middle School Girls Only STEM Day which was held as a livestream, interactive webinar, due to COVID restrictions.

• 511 teachers attended STEM Educator Workshops, reaching thousands of students through secondary impact. New initiatives included providing classroom supply sets to select educators who attended training.

• 3,087 students participated in Summer Heroes Youth Program (SHYP) with midshipmen mentors leading 150 classroom visits at nine middle schools in the local region. Additional events included an underwater robotics SeaPerch Showcase for 5th graders from local schools and a STEM Day for high school students in collaboration with the National Park Service at Fort McHenry National Monument in Baltimore, MD.

SUMMER STEM PROGRAM

The STEM Center develops midshipmen as STEM leaders and reaches into the community to sustain and foster the STEM pipeline. In collaboration with the Office of Admissions, the STEM Center implements the academic program portion of the Summer STEM Program. The annual program holds three one-week sessions and encourages rising 9th–11th grade students to pursue educational paths and careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics while introducing them to the Naval Academy as a possible resource for their future.

The program has grown to include about 9,200 student alumni, many of whom go on to continue their education at USNA and/or pursue STEM majors. With the Summer STEM Program now in its 15th year, 633 past participants have been inducted as USNA midshipmen, preferentially choosing majors in the Math and Sciences Division and Engineering and Weapons Division.

The Summer STEM Program invites about 850 students to the U.S. Naval Academy in June from all 50 states and several countries. USNA STEM faculty, staff and midshipmen offer 18 different academic modules. These modules provide campers with exposure to world-class laboratories, authentic learning experiences presented at a collegiate level, hands-on interactions and realworld applications. Subjects include robotics, machine learning, bioterrorism, applied mathematics, operations research, chemistry, aviation and aerospace, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and electronics, computer programming, cybersecurity, operations research, oceanography, weather and climate and aquaculture engineering. In June 2022, 778 students attended the week-long residential program held at the U.S. Naval Academy, led by 22 faculty and staff and 36 academic midshipmen.

GIRLS ONLY STEM EVENTS

The STEM Center hosts events specifically for girls each year, with the aim of encouraging young women to pursue interests in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. In 2021–2022, 621 middle and high school girls attended the STEM Center’s Girls Only STEM Days, which were held as in person and virtual events. Participants included diverse, underserved populations as well as military-connected students. Activities were led by female faculty and near-peer midshipmen mentors serving as role models. The Girls Only STEM events give students the opportunity to explore STEM topics and realize their own potential to thrive in rapidly growing STEM fields where female scientists and engineers remain underrepresented.

• The fall 2021 Middle School Girls Only STEM Day event was held as an interactive livestream webinar attended by students around the nation and militaryconnected students overseas, with activities led by midshipmen near-peer mentors highlighting STEM careers and women scientists and engineers. In spring 2022, the event returned to the U.S. Naval Academy as a day-long in person program for

students from the region. Midshipmen led students in hands-on activities building problem solving and critical thinking skills while engaging in the engineering design process and exploring scientific principles and how they relate to careers and realworld applications. Topics included biotechnology, bioengineering, cybersecurity, robotics, circuits, acoustics and sonar, geometry, chemistry, structures and engineering design.

• Spring 2022 events for high school girls included the annual High School Space Day and Astronaut Convocation, featuring hands-on activities focused on aerospace and flight along with attending the Astronaut Convocation and a Meet and Greet with astronauts. New this year, the High School Girls Biotech Day was held as a day-long investigation of biotechnology skills and applications. Career exploration was a key component of this program which included college, medical and graduate school student mentors along with physician and scientist mentors from DoD commands in the region.

SPRING 2022:

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS BIOTECH DAY BIOFUELS

CENTRAL DOGMA: BIOPROSPECTING WITH A BIOSENSOR ENZYME EXPLORATION

MENTOR COLLEGE AND CAREER PANEL

BIOINFORMATICS

PCR & DNA GEL ELECTROPHORESIS OF A CELLULOLYTIC GENE

STEM EDUCATOR WORKSHOPS

Throughout the 2021–2022 academic year, the STEM Center held 12 professional development events for 511 educators, engaging them in virtual and in person workshops. These training sessions, led by USNA faculty and staff, gave teachers a chance to explore STEM content areas and real-world applications, with curriculum and methodology to engage students in project-based activities in science and engineering. Providing training to teachers in public and private schools around the nation and DoDEA schools in the country and overseas, the STEM Center’s educational influence is far reaching and impacts not just the individual educators who participate in the programs, but their schools, colleagues, students and future students as well.

• The STEM Center’s annual SET Sail fall and spring programs included workshops held at the U.S. Naval Academy attended by educators from schools in underserved communities in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC, and additional states. Faculty, with midshipmen support, presented on multidisciplinary topics including biotechnology, engineering design, cybersecurity, electrical engineering, electromagnets, naval architecture, structural engineering, applied math, energy transformations and more. Teachers received curriculum and sample supplies for

implementation in the classroom. As part of a new initiative for Biotechnology Education, classroom sets for biotechnology activities were offered to teachers who completed the training. Educators from Maryland earned Continuing Professional Development credit from Maryland State Department of Education for continued attendance in the USNA training program.

• Additional in-person educator programs included a High School STEM Educator Workshop to provide professional development for high school teachers in the technical content, computations and handson skills for higher level STEM courses. A Middle School Career and Technical Educators (CTE) STEM Workshop focused on scientific and engineering principles for teachers in high-tech CTE tracks.

• Virtual educator trainings were conducted in real time, with supplies shipped to participants in advance. Multiple programs were offered in collaboration with DoDEA Americas, Towson University STEM Center for Excellence and with Army Research Lab. After completion of the training, educators were provided classroom sets of supplies to implement the activities at their own schools.

• With the aim of preparing new K–12 STEM educators capable of delivering effective STEM instruction, workshops were held for pre-service and early service teachers. In person and virtual sessions were hosted in collaboration with partner organizations in Maryland and Pennsylvania: Hood College and Philadelphia Regional Institute for STEM Educators (PRISE). The training immersed participants in STEM project-based learning methodology. The program also introduced STEM majors to the Noyce scholarship for teacher certification.

• SET Sail includes an annual week-long residential summer educator program with two sessions held onsite at the U.S. Naval Academy. Workshops cover a range of science and engineering topics delving into hands-on teaching strategies and Navy relevant applications. In summer 2022, 100 teachers from public, private and DoDEA schools across the country as well as DoDEA schools overseas were invited to attend. Lodging, meals and a travel stipend are provided, as well as supplies to implement activities in the classroom.

SET SAIL SUMMER PROGRAM

CYBERSECURITY: Cryptography, password hacking, hashing

ENGINEERING DESIGN:

Simple machines, mechanical devices

ELECTRICITY: Circuits, soldering

CHEMISTRY: Chromatography, polymers, surface tension

BIOTECHNOLOGY: Biofuels, bioterrorism, DNA

DATA SCIENCE:

Machine learning, artificial intelligence

AEROSPACE AND FLUIDS: Bernoulli’s Principle, flight, rockets

PHYSICS AND SPACE: Gears and pulleys, optics, acoustics

ENERGY TRANSFORMATIONS: Thermodynamics

ENVIRONMENT: Climate, albedo

MECHANICS AND HYDRAULICS: Hydraulics, forces, Pascal’s principle

STRUCTURES: Engineering, geometry

SUMMER HEROES YOUTH PROGRAM (SHYP)

The USNA Summer Heroes Youth Program (SHYP), offered annually, reaches thousands of middle school students from underserved public and private schools in the region. Student activity sessions are led exclusively by midshipmen near-peer mentors, who act as role models in STEM. During the program, midshipmen gain professional development experience in leadership, adaptability and communication. Student participants learn about STEM careers and focus on how scientists and engineers use their knowledge and technical skills to improve society and tackle global problems. Students develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills as they complete challenges in science and engineering and participate in sessions on a variety of subjects including engineering design, applied math, flight principles, chemistry, mechanics, physics, biotechnology and bioengineering. The aim of the program is to promote positive attributes of perseverance, selfesteem and confidence while exposing students to STEM career possibilities and real-world applications.

In summer 2022, 20 midshipmen engaged 3,087 students with 150 classroom visits at nine public middle schools with underserved populations in Baltimore, MD, Washington, DC, Prince Georges County and Anne Arundel County, MD, as well as military-connected students at Quantico Middle/High School in Quantico, VA. Additional events included an underwater robotics SeaPerch Showcase for 5th graders from Anne Arundel County Public Schools and a STEM Day for high school students in collaboration with the National Park Service at Fort McHenry National Monument in Baltimore, MD.

THANK YOU

Thank you again for your ongoing support of our STEM programs! Your generous donations and acknowledgement of the tremendously positive impact these programs have on our nation’s students and educators will allow us to continue to produce technical leaders.

CAPT JOSEPH L. MCGETTIGAN ’ 80, USN (RET.)

Director, USNA STEM Center for Education and Outreach