STEMvisions Blog

After graduating from Duke University cum laude in May 2014, Cathy Wang took a summer internship with the SSEC's Professional Services Division. During her time at Duke, Cathy became interested in the pedagogy behind STEM education In K-8 classrooms while volunteering at Durham Public Schools with the American Red Cross. What follows is the first installment in a blog series detailing Cathy's experiences at the 2014 International K-12 Science Education Institute for Leadership Development and Strategic Planning (SPI).

As a member of Rhode Island's first team to participate in a National Science Resources Center (now the Smithsonian Science Education Center) Strategic Planning Institute (SPI), I was among a fortunate group of individuals. Through sheer timing and positioning we received a 5-year NSF grant to bring together all of the elements of the SSEC's LASER model. Evidence of our success is a present-day, robust K-8 science program that has sustained itself for 24 years and counting.