9 Help 90 with "FINALS" at Crunch Time

WITH NINE SUCCESSFUL AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND HISPANIC STEM STUDENT ROLE MODELS FROM ST. PHILIP'S COLLEGE PROVIDING INSTRUCTIONAL ASSISTANCE, 90 STUDENTS HAVE 80 MINUTES TO TEACH HIGH-SPEED-HIGH-TECH LESSONS TO THEIR PARENTS AS FINAL TEAM PROJECT FOR HANDS-ON ST. PHILIP'S COLLEGE 2018 SCIENCE AND MATH SUMMER ACADEMY JULY 26

Nine St. Philip's College students help 90 prospective young scientists and their families make the connections between affordable college education and the higher-demand, higher-pay employment sectors of their city during the final day of the college's 2018 Science and Math Summer Academy July 26 at 10 a.m. in the advanced science labs within Building 1 of the college's Southwest Campus at 800 Quintana Road in the city's Port San Antonio neighborhood.

The final hands-on demonstrations for the aspiring scientists ages 11-15 (local middle school and high school science students) require 90 youth to develop the presentation and communication skills to teach the parents the science and technology in their STEM projects in 80 minutes at the college's advanced labs. The final day consists of four rotations of 20-minute hands-on kids-teaching-parents presentations in a bevy of subjects, including mechanical engineering, materials science and chemistry.

Behind the scenes and instrumental to student success in the academy project, nine St. Philip's College students served as successful African-American and Hispanic STEM role models by providing instructional assistance for the youth in the eight STEM disciplines of the SAMSA program. Three St. Philip's College education program students (Roxanne Saunders, Ryan Garza and Daniella Salas) gained valuable experience by co-teaching academy classes in 2018 with college professors and were encouraged to answer the national call to increase the number of STEM teachers.

St. Philip's College students Pierre Ramos and Sabrina Morales are both conducting research on the impact that the program has---one on the impact on the college student participants (Ramos) and one on the impact on the youth participants (Morales). The project is in its third year of research, shared Dr. Jo Dee Duncan, director of the college's Center of Excellence for Science.

"We have 90 youth participating in SAMSA this season, and our 2018 SAMSA season partners are Ella Austin Community Center, Texas A&M Agrilife and Girls, Inc.," said Duncan.

"A federal Title III Part B grant provides partial funding at the college for the establishment of community outreach programs that will encourage elementary and secondary school children to develop academic skills and the interest to pursue post-secondary education. SAMSA is one of those funded programs," Duncan explained.

"How can we continue to service low-income and under-represented minorities with our outreach programs as we transition out of our Title III Part B funding?" Duncan asked. "We, St. Philip's College students and I, are conducting publishable research using statistical analysis to show the impacts that are being made on the St. Philip's College students and the youth who participate in the Center of Excellence for Science programs. Funding for this research comes from the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Education through the Title III grant. We will be seeking to publish data we are gathering to show best practices in the design and execution of our outreach programs. This data will be useful in obtaining grants, endowments and sponsors, and in promoting service learning and civic engagement opportunities to St. Philip's College students who engage in our outreach programs," Duncan said.

"Academic skills are measured with pre-and-post testing of math and science skills using the materials from Trend in International Math and Science Study questionnaires. Changes in attitude, awareness, behavior, knowledge and skills are being measured by surveys designed using the National Science Foundation's Guidelines for Informal Education project," Duncan concluded.

For project details, contact Duncan at jduncan36@ngskmc-eis.net.