K12 STEM News

From the Classroom to the Coast: Teaching Resilience Through STEM

This summer, the Center for K12 STEM Education hosted three professional development sessions for teachers. One highlight was the MissDelta PD, which focused on New Orleans’ storm risk reduction system in anticipation of the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Dr. Michelle Sanchez appointed as the New Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Academic Partnerships

Dean Rajan is excited to announce that Dr. Michelle Sanchez has been appointed as the New Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Academic Partnerships, effective January 15.

Annual Greater New Orleans Science and Engineering Fair at Tulane University Showcases Next Wave of STEM Talent

NEW ORLEANS – More than 250 middle and high school students from the Greater Ne

Tulane professor wins STEM educator award for work with New Orleans area students and teachers

Michelle Sanchez, a senior professor of practice in the Tulane University School of Science and Engineering, has been named the winner of the Ada Lovelace STEM Educator Award for her contributions in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The awards committee cited Sanchez’s work in connecting New Orleans area school children to hands-on experiences in STEM careers, for working to increase the number of students pursuing STEM careers from historically underrepresented groups and for serving as a role model for female engineering undergraduate students.

New student organization aims to support Latinas, underrepresented groups in geoscience

The geosciences field in the U.S. is historically dominated by white men, but in recent years, there have been significant gains in terms of gender balance. For example, the National Science Foundation’s 2018 survey reported a 55.8% increase in women earning geoscience doctorate degrees since 2009. Likewise, a 2019 report from the American Geosciences Institute showed an increase in women’s participation in geoscience occupations from 22.5% in 2005 to 33.1% in 2018. However, despite these strides, racial disparities continue to persist.

Girls in STEM at Tulane fall 2019

The Tulane Univeristy School of Science and Engineering worked with several middle school girls, in grades fifth through seventh, on Saturday, Nov. 16, at its fall 2019 Girls in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) at Tulane workshop. The workshop aims to support and inspire young girls to pursue opportunities in the STEM fields. 

Live and learn

Nicholas Aldana reacts to the unfavorable outcome of his first attempt to design and build a prototype for a water filtration system. The project is part of  a course titled "Water, Water Everywhere: Using LEGO Robots to Change How We Find, Use and Dispose of Water,” one of several courses of study in the Tulane Summer Enrichment Institute on the uptown campus. The pre-college residential program allows middle and high school students to explore the latest technology and spend part of their summer in advanced STEM courses ranging from robotics to environmental science.

Middle, high school science fair puts spotlight on budding researchers

This week Tulane University hosted the 62^nd Annual Greater New Orleans Science and Engineering Fair, during which sixth- through eighth-graders and high school students, exhibited and pitted their independent student research against the work of their peers.

Tulane runs the fair, which includes cash awards, scholarship opportunities and social media contests.

LEGOs and LEDs pique girls’ STEM interest

On day one of the General Electric (GE) Girls summer program hosted by Tulane University, 13-year-old Ronae Clayton had her future plans all lined up. “I’m going to be a five-star chef and own a restaurant,” she said.

By day four of the weeklong camp, Clayton’s plans had become fuzzy. She knew what she loved, but she was experiencing a side of science that she hadn’t explored before.

Female role models make science a better fit for girls

Studies have long shown that girls are less likely than boys to be interested in math and science, but new research by Tulane University researchers published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science suggests that matching girls with female role models could dramatically reverse that trend.