Since 2017, ASTC has awarded $385,000 to member science centers and museums through Voya STEM Futures, the ASTC initiative funded by the Voya Foundation to support science centers and museums in engaging career discovery-focused STEM learning programs. Last year, seven ASTC members offered youth programming as part of Voya STEM Futures. Institutions in seven geographic regions received $15,000 each to develop or enhance programs.
Arizona Science Center
Phoenix, Arizona
Throughout the year, hundreds of girls in grades 4-8 learned about and applied STEM through open-house style programs called the Girls in STEM Initiative, along with structured half-day and full-day events. Participants explored STEM themes such as computer science, chemistry, and engineering through multiple hands-on activities, collaborative problem-solving, and team challenges, utilizing a wide variety of materials, tools, and technologies. They also learned about STEM careers and educational pathways from professional women in STEM-related industries who serve as volunteer mentors in the program. Because such specialized programs are not typically offered in school, the Girls in STEM Initiative is meeting a practical need for Arizona students, families, and for the state’s future economy.
With funding from Voya STEM Futures, Arizona Science Center implemented two half-day events for 106 girls in grades 4-8. Funds supported museum staff to plan and deliver events, for supplies and materials, marketing, and underwriting program registration fees for low-income girls.
Connecticut Science Center
Hartford, Connecticut
The Connecticut Science Center’s mission is to encourage inspired, lifelong learning through interactive and innovative experiences that explore our changing world through science. By building a STEM identity in school age children in diverse populations, the science center is supporting research that shows early exposure to STEM topics is a predictor of not only success in these school subjects but also in future careers. In research conducted by University of California Irvine, ‘girls’ self-perception in relation to science was the strongest predictor of their identification with STEM-related careers’. This study also discovered that this self-perception is directly correlated to informal science experiences both out of school and in the classroom, and the frequency of these experiences.
This research informed the A Career in UX Design workshop. Students came from New Britain, Bloomfield, Hartford, and Farmington, to explore the science center’s gallery spaces and consider where improvements could be made. Students learned about the basics of human-centered design, and were given the opportunity to test their knowledge, explore prototyping, and share relevant recommendations to make certain exhibit components more accessible for those with physical disabilities or accessibility needs.
Liberty Science Center
Jersey City, New Jersey
Liberty Science Center recorded two live surgeries for an existing program, Live From Surgery, to expand access to the program to 482 students. The program gives students a unique opportunity to peer into an operating room and witness all aspects of surgery and is a powerful learning experience exposes them to careers in biotechnology and medical science. Students gained the knowledge of medical instruments used, technology, and various careers in the surgical suite. LSC staff helped make career connections and explained the various educational levels present.
LSC’s Career Panels program gave onsite summer students a chance to learn about various career paths in STEM from volunteers selected by staff. A diversity of people with STEM jobs shared their road to success and connect with students. In the summer of 2023, career panels were provided for two groups of students, including students who are recruited from two public high schools that serve primarily Hispanic and Black students from moderate- and low-income families. Forty-four students gained a better understanding of the STEM job market and the various careers available. Remaining funds were used to support LSC’s volunteer program.
MIT Museum
Cambridge, Massachusetts
The MIT Museum successfully engaged more than 750 youth grades 4-8 in Cambridge and Somerville during and after the project period to support STEAM learning and STEAM subjects. The museum opted to mainstream youth engagement into a community-based model in response to needs expressed by program participants. The original program concept was to create a school- and teacher-based Curiosity Club to engage disadvantaged youth, but the museum recognized that there was a gap in community- and family-based programming, and they pivoted to meet these needs.
In July and August 2022, the museum ran four activities for school-aged youth: two full-day programs for middle school students through Recess, a park-based, STEAM-focused program that aims to halt the summer slide for historically underserved youth; an exoplanet workshop for youth working with Innovators for Purpose, a local youth-focused non-profit that links teens to design careers; and a workshop and tour with the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program for high-schoolers in Cambridge. They also invited city’s team of linguistic ambassadors to tour the museum and share information about programs with linguistically isolated parents and caregivers. The workshop with Innovators for Purpose grew into the Design Redefined series which continues today, and brings together MIT’s Morningside Academy of Design and local teens working with Innovators for Purpose at the museum for after-school networking and learning sessions.
Museum of Science and History (MOSH)
Jacksonville, Florida
MOSH education staff launched the afterschool program S.L.A.M. (STEAM Life Academy at MOSH) with Voya STEM Futures funding. Registration was open to families of students in kindergarten through grade 8. Five to ten students attended weekly themed sessions in October, November, and December. Many students who attended a program would continue to return throughout the month or sign up for a different month. At the end of December, MOSH staff evaluated the program and had many requests from students to continue the program. S.L.A.M. continued to be offered from January to April, shifting the target program age to be between kindergarten and grade 5.
The most popular themes were Coding for Space Exploration, Journey to the Asteroid Belt, Be the Engineer, and Ocean Conservation. The primary audience for the S.L.A.M. program was homeschooled and elementary students. The S.L.A.M. program consistently saw around five students every Wednesday during the 2022-2023 school year. Although the participating numbers were less than expected, the curriculum was adjusted to the needs of the students and created more meaningful connections with returning participants. During the year, MOSH reached 105 students and offered 25 sessions. Most of the participants in the pre-program survey identified as White or African American, and more students identified as female than male.
Tellus Science Museum
Cartersville, Georgia
Previously, Tellus Science Museum concentrated on the nine days of spring break in April as the focus for promoting STEM careers to youth. The museum used the Voya STEM Futures opportunity to make a greater impact by promoting STEM careers at other museum events, including the June Rockfest event (geology careers), May National Astronomy Day event (astronomy careers), July Weather Day event (meteorology careers), and October Heavy Metal in Motion event (careers in operating big machines, aviation, and applied technology). These programs reached the museum’s target audience of families and youth ages 6–16. Tellus Science Museum is 40 miles north of Atlanta, so it reaches urban, suburban and rural audiences. The museum also provided free or reduced admission to the museum for locally underserved audiences.
The Works Museum
Minneapolis, Minnesota
The Works Museum augmented the existing She Engineers girls’ initiative in order to expand the program’s reach to underserved communities. The museum collaborated with YWCA Minneapolis’ Girls, Inc. and Zanewood Community STEAM School which serve communities underrepresented in STEM, to bring hands-on engineering events directly to their audiences. Children and their families explored fun engineering design challenges together and met women working in STEM fields.
She Engineers focuses on career awareness and engaging girls, including cisgender and transgender girls, non-binary or gender non-conforming students, and any other girl-identifying youth in engineering and STEM. Funding from Voya STEM Futures was used to grow this key initiative and allowed the museum and its partners to host three She Engineers events, reaching an estimated 240 youth.
She Engineers events through this program were provided free of charge for attendees, eliminating a financial barrier to participation. Additionally, by holding events directly in partner locations, transportation barriers associated with coming to the museum were reduced. The funding also allowed the museum to translate marketing materials into Spanish and Somali to increase participation and awareness of programming.