STEM West received funding (approximately $9000 value) to train and coach 12 FLL Jr. teams. Three schools: Wittenburg Elementary of Alexander County, Gamewell Elementary of Burke County, and Webb Murray Elementary of Catawba County provided coaches. After training, the coaches provide a club for a total of 144 girls this year for the Aqua Challenge … Continue reading Granted: LEGO Foundation First Lego League Jr. Season Pass!

2nd Annual EdCamp STEM West Registration is now open for EdCamp STEM West on January 20th, 2018 at Newton Conover Middle School (873 Northern Dr NW, Conover, NC 28613) from 8:00 until 1:00. An EdCamp is an “Unconference” where participants’ interests are the focus of the sessions! Following the EdCamp, 12 student teams will participate in the FLL … Continue reading Registration Now Open for the 2nd Annual STEM West EdCamp

All community members are invited to attend STEM Trek! 2018 at the SALT Block of Hickory (243 3rd Ave NE, Hickory, NC 28601) to learn about STEM Careers across the region. Tables from local STEM businesses, formal and informal educational groups, non-profits, etc. will be providing hands-on experiences for adults and youth. Registration is not … Continue reading STEM Trek! 2018 – Save the Date for April 21, 2018

Agenda: STEM West UpdatesSummer Cortinas of Bionetwork of NC Community Colleges www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/bionetworkMia Pumo of NAF naf.org

GEM Clubs (Girls Excelling in Math and Science) While at the NC Center of Engineering Technologies (NCCET), 27 educators from across the region, including Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, and Lincoln counties spent the week of August 7-10th training to become GEMS coaches and create GEMS Clubs. GEMS (Girls Excelling in Math and Science) clubs will … Continue reading

STEM West and NC Center of Engineering Technologies (NCCET) are partnering to host Code.org workshops this summer. These engaging experiences will run 9:00-12:00 each day for all interested educators, formal and informal. Participants will learn about the Hour of Code and how to use the FREE Code.org curriculum to engage students in computational thinking. July … Continue reading Code.org Workshops

Filling the Gap Spring STEM West meeting was held at the WPCOG on April 26th. Along with networking, stakeholders started the process of asset mapping the region’s STEM-based activities in our communities. Through a Gallery Walk, they also interacted with Filling the Gap teachers that were trained last summer in project based learning (PBL). These … Continue reading 2017 Spring STEM West Meeting Recap

Broad partnerships that engage a variety of stakeholders are crucial for developing and articulating shared values and language for engaging in collaborative initiatives, particularly if those initiatives are anticipated to be sustainable, effective, and inclusive.  As we look at the Computer Science and Computational Thinking (CS+CT) landscape of western North Carolina, it is clear that … Continue reading Computer Science + Computational Thinking Landscape of Western NC

These clubs will allow girls to gain confidence in science, technology, engineering, and math. There has been a great deal of research that continues to provide evidence that gender is the gap found in STEM careers. For more specific information about GEMS clubs see www.gemsclub.org STEM West has received funding from the Duke Energy Foundation and … Continue reading Calling for teachers to apply to become GEMS club coaches!!

The application for Filling the Gap projects is now available for middle and high school math, science, and CTE teachers across Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, and Lincoln counties. Filling the GapDownload