Background
The Science House is an educational outreach arm of NC State University that serves over 5,000 teachers and over 36,000 students annually from six offices spread across the state. The mission of The Science House is to:
- Cultivate and diversify the pool of students pursuing degrees and careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields.
- Improve the quality of teaching and learning in STEM education.
- Communicate innovative scientific and educational research to the public.
The Science House programs are guided by the best research and practices in STEM education. In addition, they lead the K-12 outreach projects for several multi-university STEM research centers that are at the cutting edge of their disciplines.
Work Plan
Climate science education is a crucial part of the work of The Science House. The Science House leads teacher professional development sessions that focus on understanding the Earth system, the changing nature of the climate and its impacts, resource management and sustainability. The Science House supports students and teachers by providing climate materials, teaching techniques, and sharing cutting edge research from climate scientists. Laboratory equipment is loaned out to participating teachers at no cost. Students can use this equipment to collect local data, which can then be compared with various data from the National Climatic Data Center.
The Science House partners with CICS-NC and collaborates with NOAA's NCDC to outreach to K-12 students and teachers. Part of this outreach includes collaboration on an exhibit that will be erected at Asheville's Colburn Earth Science Museum showcasing the history of the people who supported the weather and climate community since 1857. Supporting education materials will be developed by The Science House to enhance the experience for visitors. Michelle Benigno leads this effort in Western North Carolina.
