Mississippi State University gets $1.2 million NSF grant for STEM education in rural areas

Mississippi State University along with Louisville Municipal School District will hire, train and place highly qualified teachers in the rural areas of Mississippi.

Study in US: Mississippi State University has received a $1.2 million grant from the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program of the National Science Foundation. The fund was granted for the university's efforts to advance science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in the rural areas of Mississippi.

The university team will focus on preparing STEM courses for various careers in education mostly in rural and underserved areas. Donna M. Pierce, associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy will lead the STEM education-related initiatives.

“The project aims to serve the national need of enhancing STEM education in rural areas, targeting the shortage of certified educators in chemistry, physics and mathematics. Students selected for this scholarship will receive more than simply monetary scholarship support while at MSU—they will also receive specialized training in cross-disciplinary thinking and working in rural environments, and will continue to receive support from the MSU project team after entering their classrooms," said Pierce.

MSU is sparking STEM enthusiasm

Bagley College of Engineering in the Mississippi State is offering Bagley Robotics. It is the university's leading robotics education organization which provides students of eighth grade with opportunities to engage with robotics technology.

“The more I engage with Mississippi industry, the more I understand that there is a need for children to have at least seen robotics before. It’s beneficial when they enter the workforce that they have some idea of what these machines can do, and that begins in elementary school," said Nichole Peterson, program coordinator.

Bagley Robotics is also providing training and workshops for teachers and schools.

Kayla Hathcock, a computer science teacher at East Amory Elementary who attends these workshops said, “Each time I attend a workshop, I always bring back something new to incorporate into my program. I feel better equipped to translate the complex materials, making it easy for my students to understand and prepare for future competitions.”

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