2011 - 2012 STEM Ambassador Sign Up
1. Introduction
Dear STEM Ambassador,
Thank you for agreeing to be a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) Ambassador for the DIGITS Project,a STEM education program designed to increase the interest of sixth graders in STEM subjects and careers. The DIGITS Project is offered free to Massachusetts schools with a sixth grade. The major qualification to be a STEM Ambassador is that you are a PROFESSIONAL WHO WORKS IN A STEM JOB IN A STEM ENVIRONMENT.
Being a STEM Ambassador means visiting one school that we will select and connect you to and speaking to 2-4 sixth grade math and/or science classes during this academic year. You may, of course, choose to visit additional classes.
Volunteers are asked to do two things: (1) inspire students with your personal story by sharing your enthusiasm for your work, talking about the benefits of working in STEM fields, and communicating the relevance of math and science to your job, and (2) deliver a message to students that, by taking math and science throughout school, they will have a variety of exciting career opportunities available to them.
You are helping to address a serious problem in this state: Massachusetts is below the national average in students interested in STEM fields. Nationally, 33% of high school students taking the SAT's indicate they are interested in pursuing a STEM career. In MA, that number is only 29%. We need to increase that number to fill the jobs that industry is creating today and in the future.
Before you enter the classroom, we will provide you with a 60 minute training session delivered via conference call. Prior to the training session you will receive a STEM Ambassador Guide that includes an explanation of the program and highlights of our research on how middle school students relate to STEM subjects and careers; a suggested script for you to use in the classroom that will enable you to cover the four main classroom exercises in a 45 minute class period; and a set of best practices on how to conduct your class visit.
When you complete the training, we will match you to a school that is close to where you live or work and we will send you, by UPS, a set of creative, interactive materials for use in the classroom.
We will be visiting schools by region. The schedule is as follows:
Fall: Central Massachusetts
Winter: Northeastern Massachusetts and Greater Boston
Spring: Southeastern Massachusetts
You will be contacted based on the above schedule for your training, so please recognize that you may not hear from us immediately because the school visits will be spread out over the entire academic year.
Thanks for your interest and enthusiasm. We are delighted to be working with you!
The DIGITS Project was created by six leading industry associations: The Engineering Center (host organization); Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council; Massachusetts Biotechnology Education Foundation, affiliated with the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council; the Massachusetts Network Communications Council (now a part of the Mass Tech Leadership Council); Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council; and New England Clean Energy Council. The Project is being implemented in cooperation with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Massachusetts Elementary School Principals Association, and Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators’ Association.
Originally funded by the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education’s STEM Pipeline Fund and the Mass Technology Leadership Council, the project is now underwritten by STEM companies and organizations including The MathWorks, Noyce Foundation, Akamai, Analog Devices, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Boston Scientific Foundation, Mass Life Sciences Center, SolidWorks, Verizon, Cisco, Meditech, PTC, IBM, Broadcom, and EMD Serono.
Please complete the following questionnaire so that we can match you to a nearby school.