December 2023 Issue

Happy Holidays and Wishing You the Very Best in the New Year From All of Us at C-STEM and the Blackshear VI!

At C-STEM, we are honored by the support, compassion, partnership, and dedication we've seen develop over more than two decades of serving underrepresented and underserved students with STEM resources.

We wish very happy holidays, and a huge thank you, to our:

partners and sponsors, who make our efforts possible by providing financial support and community connections
volunteers, who give selflessly of their time and resources
staff, who are always willing to pivot and learn new technology and approaches
students, whose enthusiasm and curiosity inspire us every day
parents and supporters, who spread the word and connect us with those who need our help
educators, who work hand-in-hand with us to deliver high quality, hands-on STEM education experiences

With your help, we have gotten SO close to our goal of $150,000 fundraising for 2023. We are asking just one more time -- please help us dream bigger and help even more students in 2024.

Every dollar counts - a $10 donation will help us meet our goal! You can also help by forwarding this email and sharing the donation link with your network and on your social media.

DONATE NOW

STEM Education Insights

What's in Store for Education in 2024?

Written by: Reagan Flowers, Ph.D.

As the calendar flips to 2024, the world of PreK-12 education stands at a crossroads, a juncture where the past meets the future, and the challenges and opportunities of a new year beckon. It's a story of resilience and innovation, of hurdles to overcome and promising horizons to explore.

Keep Reading

Be Part of Our Mission

Are you a teacher needing STEMSTEAM Toolkits.png

Download the 2023 State of STEM Report

The C-STEM Challenge theme for the 2023-2024 academic year

A Sustainable Horizon: Empowering Collective Action for Carbon Neutrality

Get in touch with us to learn more!

Opportunities & Deadlines

STEM OPPORTUNITY GUIDE

Don't miss out on upcoming STEM opportunities! This month, we’ve compiled even more opportunities to share!

For Students & Parents

Jax Student Summer Program

The Summer Student Program is designed for students who want to immerse themselves in genetics and genomics research. The 10-week program includes a stipend, room, board, and travel. Open to high school seniors and undergraduate students.

Apply by Jan. 29

Power to Explore Student Challenge

The writing challenge invites K-12th grade students in the United States to learn about radioisotope power systems, a type of nuclear battery integral to many of NASA’s far-reaching space missions, and then write an essay about a new powered mission for the agency.

Enter by Jan. 26

For Teachers & Leaders

Apply for a Moon Tree

Nearly 2000 tree seeds travelled to the Moon and back to Earth aboard the Artemis I, Orion space capsule! Education and community organizations are invited submit a proposal for an Artemis Moon Tree Seedling through NASA’s Artifacts Module Program.

Find out more

National Summer Teacher Institute

The National Summer Teacher Institute (NSTI) is a multi-day professional development training opportunity designed to support elementary, middle, and high school teachers as they increase their knowledge of concepts of making, inventing, and intellectual property (IP) creation and protection.

Find out more

C-STEM and HISD: Schlumberger Holiday STEM Hackathon Experience for Students from HISD Schools

C-STEM, HISD Foundation, and Schlumberger collaborated to provide a half-day Hackathon experience for several schools selected by Houston Independent School District Foundation. The goal of the experience was to engage students in the completion of activities that align with the students’ affiliations with club(s) at their school. The Hackathon provided thematic Drone, Coding and Robotics competition activities for elementary, middle, and high school students. C-STEM provided the Robotics Activities, while its Partners, Montrey Pertile provided Coding activities and Baily Military Institute (Dr. Charles Hines and Michael Hiner) provided Drone activities. During the final event presentations, there was a raffle drawing wherein 9 students were awarded Personal Computers. The Holiday Hackathon was a wonderful experience for all attendees!

Connect at UTMB

UTMB, CenterPoint, and C-STEM partnered to guide elementary and middle school students in various stem activities. The students reflected on prompts about environmentalism, climate change, and technology with a focus on the Galveston community. Over a two-week period, the students created art that represented these themes by using the supplied crayon/paint, compasses, and protectors as part of the C-STEM Toolkits. They also wrote short reflections and presented their artwork to the volunteers.

Blast from the Past

C-STEM Reaches Far and Wide

We love taking you down memory lane. As we close out the year, we bring you a video from a C-STEM school in Maryland from 2013. Throughout the years, we've held C-STEM competitions in several spots around the country. We hope you see some familiar faces and it brings up some fond memories!