Capital STEM Alliance Newsletter – April 2023

Three teens working together

RALLY

Mason County Consortium

The Mason County Prevention Summit will be held on Friday, April 14, from 9 am-3 pm at the Skokomish Tribe Community Center, 19731 N. US Highway 101, Skokomish Nation. The goal is to provide an enriching training on prevention strategies, networking, and resource-sharing opportunities for youth, volunteers, and professionals working toward prevention of substance abuse, violence, tobacco/vaping, and other destructive behaviors. Contact Emily Layman or call (360) 427-9670 x406 for more information.

Family Education and Support Services (FESS) continues its diaper drive and needs diapers in sizes 4, 5, and 6. Coming up, United Way of Mason County will hold a Spring Dessert event on May 12 from 12-2 pm at the Shelton Civic Center. Call (360) 426-4999 or email [email protected] for more information.

CareNet has diapers available at their offices on a walk-in basis. Open Mondays and Thursdays from 10-5 and Tue-Weds. From 11-4. Also, CareNet is holding a baby boutique and classes at 2233 Jefferson St. West in Mason County.

Community Youth Services’ Transitional Age Youth (TAY) program has trained counselors in SPARK to provide services for parents and teens. Called Love Letters and Toddlers for Teens, SPARK holds a series of workshops on healthy relationships, and ACES and teaches resiliency tools.

Lewis County Thrives

The Community Foundation of South Puget Sound has two scholarship opportunities currently available for residents of Lewis County:

Applications for both scholarships are due by April 12, 2023. The following items are required as part of the application process:

  • 2 Letters of Recommendation
  • Grade Transcript
  • Student Aid Report from FAFSA/WAFSA
  • Attendance Record for all four years of High School

For more information, please visit the Scholarship tab on the Community Youth Foundation website.

Lewis County Career Pathways in Healthcare: Grow Your Own! Event will be held at the Centralia College campus on Thursday, April 27 from 6-8:30 pm.

 

STEM NETWORK

The Capital STEM Alliance will hold its second P20W Landscape Gap focus group session via zoom on Thursday, March 30 from 10-11 am PST. As part of a broader effort to understand current data landscape, use, and needs across the system, Washington STEM is partnering with regional networks including the Capital STEM Alliance, to convene stakeholders to:

  • Build a collective base of knowledge, critical questions, and data use cases/needs
  • Design advocacy to unlock and mobilize P20W data so that educators, families, communities, and decision makers can access/use data to drive equitable policy and practice at local, regional, and state levels

Two Opportunities (please participate in one or both):

  1. Complete this short survey (11 questions) by March 24, 2023, that will assist in creating a regional P20W data partners profile.
    AND/OR
  2. Participate in a focus group where we will explore and discuss data usage and barriers to utilization, especially across systems.
    • Date: Thursday, March 30
    • Time: 10-11:30 am
    • Location: Zoom | Meeting ID: 872 9450 1897

Washington STEM’s Rising Star Award is back! Do you know a stand-out high school Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior girl that has inspired others through their work or volunteerism in STEM? If so, please consider nominating them for the Rising Star Award! This award seeks to honor young women from around the state who are likely to become the next generation of STEM leaders. We hope that by sharing the accomplishments and stories of these young women, they can help inspire more girls to reach for the stars and embrace STEM.

We are looking for young thinkers, scientists, engineers, inventors, entrepreneurs, and leaders who have inspired others with their STEM experiences in or outside the classroom.

Nomination Form | Due: April 14, 2023

Awardees will receive a $500 stipend, various STEM-related goodies, and a trip for the awardee and a parent/guardian to an in-person event at the Microsoft Bellevue campus. Rising Stars will be featured on the Washington STEM website and in social media campaigns. They will also have networking, personal development, and mentorship opportunities with STEM professionals.

Nomination Criteria:
The student is a freshman, sophomore, or junior, identifies as a young woman, and meets at least one of the following:

  • Participates in STEM activities in or outside of the classroom (robotics, 4-H/ag science club, computer science group, etc.)
  • Develops/creates STEM projects in or outside of the classroom (website development, business ventures, STEM-related art, etc.)
  • Uses STEM as a means of service to their community and/or family (tutoring, volunteering with a STEM-based community program, etc.)
  • Has a general passion for learning and exploring topics in STEM (exhibits infectious enthusiasm for STEM activities and/or topics)

Thank you for helping us to select an amazing young woman to honor and please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions about the nomination process or the program.

Kagan 2023 USA Tour

Yelm Community Schools will be hosting Kagan: Cooperative Learning – Day 2 Workshop on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at Yelm Middle School from 8:30-3:45 pm. The registration fee is $199 per participant. Attendees will not have to have attended Day 1 of Cooperative Learning to participate in Day 2. They will learn new strategies to use in the classroom.

Principals, Vice Principals, and approved district Administrators can attend for FREE! Attendees will be able to sign up for 6 hours of equity clock hours at the training.

Registration is easy! Just fill out this online registration form and email or fax it in (faxable form here). Here is an informational flyer attached with all the event details.

Career Connected Learning

Yelm Community Schools is hosting a week-long, hands-on STEM learning camp for students in grades 3-8 on August 7 -11 at Yelm Middle School.

Friday, August 11 is STEMKAMP Family Day, when parents and guardians of our campers will come see and experience what their children have learned. We will have planned activities including a family challenge, speakers, and lunch.

As a part of this Family Day, the STEMKAMP team would like to invite you as a part of the limited number of groups to set up information tables for families. We will have tables available for groups to set up for handouts, information, etc. The sale of any items or services is prohibited, no exceptions. 

With STEM as the focus of this week, we are looking for groups that can share information about upcoming opportunities for summer events and year-long learning. We would also like to include STEM careers in the information being shared. This is a great opportunity to expose students and families to the wide world of STEM-related careers!

This is a US Department of Defense STEM Innovation grant with nine other districts across the USA. Goshen Education received this grant last year and will fund this camp for three consecutive summers. We are the only STEMKAMP in the state of Washington!

The grant and camp are focused for children of active-duty military parents. We had 150 students apply for the 125 available spots last year. The camp also has children of veterans, retirees, and non-military families.

If you are interested in being part of STEMKAMP Family Day, as a speaker, and/or hosting a table, please complete the online registration form.

  • Date: Friday, August 11, 2023
  • Time: 8:30 am set up. Parents and students will have access from 9:00–1:00 pm
  • Location: Yelm Middle School, 401 Coates Ave NW  Yelm, WA 98597

The annual Expanding Your Horizons Conference—a day dedicated to introducing middle school girls and female-identifying students to STEAM careers—is now recruiting mentors for its May 20, 2023, in-person conference at South Puget Sound Community College in Tumwater (SPSCC) and you came to mind! The conference needs female and non-binary professionals to lead workshops on any and all STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) topics.

To volunteer, please follow this link to register online: Create Mentor Registration (razorbox.com)

Commitment required of mentors:

  • Lead a 50-minute, hands-on/interactive workshop 3 times throughout the day (classes are generally 10-12 students unless you request a higher or lower limit). To see workshop ideas check out their past conference brochures.
  • Commit and register by April 1, 2023—provide a class title and brief description for the conference brochure and let them know if you think you will have special classroom needs
  • Volunteer in person on Saturday, May 20, from approximately 9 am until 1:30 pm
  • All conference volunteers (mentors, parents, committee members, day-of volunteers) must pass a criminal background check in order to participate

Because of the goals of the conference (helping young girls and non-binary youth see themselves in these careers), they do ask that workshops be female or non-binary led and we understand that in some fields this local team demographic may be difficult to meet. If needed, instructors can use male assistants/helpers as long as the workshop is led by a female/non-binary individual.

To see samples of workshops that were held in the past check out their conference brochures.

The Washington Youth Challenge Academy is accepting applications for its summer session beginning July 17. The mission of the Academy is to provide a highly disciplined, safe, and professional learning environment where students can improve their education level, and employment potential, and become a responsible, productive citizen of Washington. For more information about the Youth Academy or to register for the program, please visit this link to the flyer.

 

CAREER CONNECTED LEARNING

Career Connect Washington’s Round 11 Program Builder RFP is expected to be published in early to mid-April. To better support and prepare our regional partners in their efforts to create or expand career exploration, preparation, and launch programs for youth, the Capital STEM Alliance at ESD 113 will hold a virtual tutorial on the Career Connect Washington Program Builder RFP – Round 11, on Thursday, April 13 from 12:00-1:30 pm PST.

We are offering the combined expertise of past awardees and others with experience in this process to take your questions and provide guidance on completing each section of the Round 11 RFP (the Round 10 RFP is attached as a guide). In addition, our CCL team – Kat Santana, Cecily Kiester, and Lorie Thompson – can provide free, ongoing support to any organizations that intend to submit proposals for this round.

What does this funding support? For those unfamiliar with Career Connect Washington’s purpose for issuing these funds, the graphic below outlines the three levels of career pathway funding opportunities. NOTE: Funds may only be used for program development, not implementation.

Career Explore programs are typically focused on youth who are in grades 6-10.

Career Prep programs are typically focused on youth who are in grades 11-12.

Career Launch programs are typically focused on youth who are in grade 12 and above (HS grad or age 18).

Who should attend this meeting? Any organization interested in developing a new, or expanding an existing, career explore, prep, or launch program including:

  • Employers
  • School Districts
  • Community-Based Organizations
  • Tribes
  • State/Local Agencies
  • Post-Secondary Institutions

In addition to holding this virtual tutorial, we plan to record the session and post it and a FAQ on the ESD 113 website for those who are unable to attend.

For more information or to obtain the Zoom link, please contact Lorie Thompson.

Pacific Mountain Workforce Development Council has released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for grant funding to support Quality Jobs, Equity, Strategy, and Training (QUEST). Non-profit and for-profit organizations are encouraged to apply by the deadline of April 9, 2023. Funds will be allocated to enhance existing local projects, or support the development of new regional efforts to implement programs and strategies designed to meet the needs of employers in the following sectors:

  • Food & Accommodations (Hospitality)
  • Food Production (Key occupations related to Hospitality, crop production, livestock production, and meat production)
  • Specialty Manufacturing

For more information, contact Emma Seymour, Communications Manager, or visit the flyer.

Southwest Washington Area Health Education Center is hosting an upcoming event for high school students in grades 9-12 who are interested in healthcare careers, called “Grow Your Future.” The event will be held on Thursday evening, April 27, 2023, from 6:00-8:30 pm PST at Centralia College. For more information or to register for the event, please contact Pat Lange or view the flyer. English | Spanish

The Bridge Music Project is hosting a FREE eight-week audio production/beat making workshop for youth ages 14-18 of all skill levels, with professional producer Smoke M2D6. Click here for more information or to register.