STEM – diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) Program 2021

PREPARING STUDENTS TO SUCCEED IN A DIVERSE EQUITABLE INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE

STEM – Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) Program 2021

Agenda

Session 1:

Wednesday, August 4, 2021 9AM-12:30PM – TO REGISTER click here.

9AM-10AM    Welcome & Panel

WELCOME

• CONNECT Partnership – SE MA STEM Network
  Dr. Stacey Kaminski, Executive Director
• Supporting Student Success in STEM – ACT-SO Gold Medal Winners
  Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO)
  Yvangi Jacques (Avon Middle school) – Physics & Classical Piano
• Executive Office of Education or MA STEM Advisory Council Initiatives – TBD       

PANEL FOCUS:  National & MA STEM & DEI Initiatives – Connection to Local Programs

PANEL MODERATOR: Michael Tamasi, AccuRounds – President & CEO, Executive Committee Business Leaders United – Chair, Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative – Co-Chair, Southeastern Advanced Manufacturing Consortium (SAMC) Partner.

PANELISTS – Cris Ajemian, American Association of University Women – AAUW-MA Co-president, Bridgewater Communities for Civil Rights Member, Massasoit Community College – Retired Professor-Spanish, Portuguese and ESL; Dr. Jim Cobbs, MA Association of School Superintendents (M.A.S.S.) – Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy Committee, Brockton Public Schools (BPS) – Executive Director of Operations & Principal Edison Academy, MA Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (DESE) – Influence 100 Fellow, Brockton Branch NAACP Member; Yvette Joyce, M.Ed. – Public & Private Sector – Software Engineer, Brockton Public Schools – ELA Teacher, MA Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (DESE) – Inspired Fellow, Brockton Branch NAACP Member; Dr. Chandra Orrill, UMass Dartmouth – Kaput Center for Research & Innovation in STEM Education; Pat Monteith, Region V Science Fair & MA Science & Engineering Fair – Co-chair, Brockton Area Branch NAACP – Treasurer, National Council of Negro Women Boston Chapter – Member, MA Commission on the Status of Women –  Commonwealth Heroines of Massachusetts Class of 2021.

10:15AM-12PM    WORKSHOPS

Three workshops will be held concurrently and offered twice at 10:15AM and again at 11:15AM.

Computational Thinking Counts in Elementary Grades:
Powerful STEM Teaching and Learning for the 21st Century
Attendees will engage in activities and learn about this project that supports elementary teachers to integrate computational thinking into their mathematics and science lessons. The project includes opportunities for teachers to develop lesson or unit plans and to share their work with other interested teachers. If you would like more information about this project, please contact Dr. Chandra Orrill, STEM Ed & Teacher Development – UMass Dartmouth at corrill@umassd.edu. Presenters: Dr. Chandra Orrill, UMass Dartmouth – Kaput Center for Research & Innovation in STEM Education, Zarina Gearty and Kun Wang , Ph.D. students UMD STEM Education program. 

Hurricane Heros! Using Equitable Teaching Strategies in the 2021 STEM Challenge
Join us as we model strategies for equitable STEM instruction using an engineering design challenge. This workshop will introduce our 2021 STEM week design challenge, Hurricane Heros! StormCity, Massachusetts.  Participants will engage as learners in one of the activities that will be part of our phenomena-based curriculum packet for STEM week participants.  Presenters: Rosemary Rak & Margaret Brumsted, Wade Institute for Science Education, which is a 501 (c)(3) dedicated to hands-on, minds-on, inquiry-based science education. More information on the Wade Institute at https://www.wadeinstitutema.org.  

Making Positive Change – community STEM & DEI Initiatives
In response to issues relative to DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) and the need to increase participation in STEM education and STEM careers, community organizations are working with schools, businesses, colleges & universities, public libraries, local government, and other community members to ensure all students have the skills, knowledge, and mindset needed to succeed in school and in their community, and to be able to take advantage of career opportunities that support financial independence and economic security in an equitable and inclusive workplace.

Attendees will learn about the goals of each organization and the strategies and actions that support achieving their goals.

Presenters: Bridgewater Communities for Civil Rights – Vernon and Beryl Domingo; Brockton Public Schools – Renee Heywood, Executive Director of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion; Community Coalition for Change – Neusa Santos, Electrical Engineer at Haemonetics and Kathleen Wood, Clinical Respiratory Care Professor at Massasoit Community College; Easton Public Schools – Dr. Lisha Cabral, Superintendent, MA Association of School Superintendents (M.A.S.S.) – Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy Committee and Christine Pruitt, Asst. Superintendent Easton STEAM Committee Chair; Raising Multicultural Kids – Kelly Lamb, Co-Founder/President.

Facilitator: Diane Fererra, AccuRounds Director of Human Resources, Southeastern Advanced Manufacturing Consortium Partner, SE MA STEM Network Advisory Board Member.

12-12:30PM    Report Out by Discussion Group – Attendees will share STEM/DEI plans.

Agenda

Session 2:

Wednesday, August 11, 2021 9AM-12:30PM – TO REGISTER click here

9AM-10AM    Welcome & Panel

WELCOME

• CONNECT Partnership – SE MA STEM Network
  Dr. Stacey Kaminski, Executive Director
• Supporting Student Success in STEM – ACT-SO Gold Medal Winners
  Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO)
  Isabelle Staco (Brockton High) – Biology – Full scholarship to Yale
• Executive Office of Education or MA STEM Advisory Council Initiatives – TBD

Panel Moderator: Dr. Laura Douglas, President, Bristol Community College/ CONNECT Board Chair

Panel Focus: Community STEM/DEI Models for Making Positive Change

This panel will highlight how Brockton and East Bridgewater are addressing STEM and DEI in their respective communities.

Panelists:                          

Brockton

Brockton Public Schools, Supt. Michael Thomas or designee

NAACP Brockton Branch, Phyllis Ellis, President

East Bridgewater                           

East Bridgewater Public Schools, Asst. Superintendent Gina Williams

EBEA Task Force on Race, Julia Sheehan, East Bridgewater Public Schools, High School Social Studies Teacher, East Bridgewater Education Association Member

Business/Workforce

MassHire Greater Brockton Workforce Board, David Vincent, Assistant Director of Youth Services for the MassHire Greater Brockton YouthWorks

North Easton Machine,Paula Martel, North Easton Machine HR Manager, MassHire Greater Brockton Board Member,Southeastern Advanced Manufacturing Consortium, Partner, SE MA STEM Network Advisory Board

10:15AM-12PM    WORKSHOPS

Three workshops will be held concurrently and offered twice at 10:15AM and again at 11:15AM.

 Plastic Makes Perfect?

We will provide a brief introduction to polymers, their use in life and technological advances, and their unintentional overuse in everyday life.  We will discuss ways in which plastic waste can be safely reduced. This includes current mechanisms such as recycle, reuse, and reduction; bio-digestion of plastics; and the production of environmentally-friendly alternatives to plastics. We are planning to present during STEM Week.

Presenters: Michael Grima and Inara Colon – Collegium Pharmaceuticals, Stoughton MA.

Unpacking “Good Intentions”.

We will be focusing on what it means to understand notions of equity and justice from Black and Brown students’ perspectives and lived experiences. We will be using an intersectional lens to unpack how our “good intentions” to cultivate identities of hard-work, grit, or persistence among students can be situated in meritocratic ideas or normative notions that in the long run can harm our students. We will propose a systemic approach to undoing some of the injustices rather than an individualistic approach that is often limited to individual agency.

Presenters: Dr. Shakhnoza Kayumova, UMass Dartmouth – Kaput Center for Research & Innovation in STEM Education and Eleanor Richard, Graduate Research Assistant.

Making Positive Change – successful strategies

In response to issues relative to DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) and the need to increase participation in STEM education and STEM careers, community organizations are working with schools, businesses, colleges & universities, public libraries, local government, and other community members to ensure all students have the skills, knowledge, and mindset needed to succeed in school and in their community, and to be able to take advantage of career opportunities that support financial independence and economic security in an equitable and inclusive workplace. Attendees will learn about strategies that support achieving DEI & STEM education goals.

Presenters: Bridgewater Communities for Civil Rights – Cat Stewart & Sam Baumgarten; Community Coalition for Change – Julia Sheehan, Director of Education; NAACP Brockton Branch – Phyllis Ellis, President; Raising Multicultural Kids – Denise Lane – Co-Founder/Executive Director.

Facilitator: Paula Martel, North Easton Machine HR Manager, MassHire Greater Brockton Board Member, Southeastern Advanced Manufacturing Consortium Partner, SE MA STEM Network Advisory Board Member.

12-12:30PM    Report Out by Discussion Group – Attendees will share STEM/DEI plans.