A Measurable Effect

Given the age range of those involved – primarily, fourth and fifth grade students – some of the first students that went through SEBA in Illinois are now attending college. However, scale-up funding and grants are needed to more closely follow students as they move through their school systems. The program was also recently expanded to include girls as well as boys.

According to surveys done in the aftermath of the program though, as of 2018 about 96 percent of the students who participated in SEBA in Illinois were more interested in science. About 92 percent were more confident in their science and mathematics classes, and 88 percent participated more in their science and mathematics classes.

The program was also picked as one of the 2022 Inspiring Programs in STEM from Insight Into Diversity. In May 2022, SEBA received a $739,486 grant from the National Science Foundation to continue its efforts. Greer noted that the program does not cost participating students or participating schools anything out of pocket.

The Future

While Greer didn't have specific targets in mind for the program's size, he said their goal is to grow to more schools and to serve more students. He noted that the model they had in place could scale regionally, or even nationally, although a key principle going forward would be to keep it free for participants.

“We want to be sure that we're building out a robust program,” he said. “And we want to be sure that we're building out a program that is sustainable. Ideally, I would love for the program to grow not only just throughout the City of Houston, but throughout the state of Texas, and hopefully at one point, it will become a national program. I know that's a big goal. But I think that we can definitely achieve it with the right resources, the right people involved, and the right attitude.”

If you're interested in becoming a corporate sponsor or contributing to SEBA, please contact Jerrod Henderson, jahenderson5@uh.edu.

For more information on SEBA, visit their website. https://stelmobrady.egr.uh.edu/