Effective and Authentic Science Events
The Effective Authentic Science Events (EASE) program connects North Carolina Community Colleges with local middle school students for a day of inquiry-based science, a taste of the college environment, and STEM career exploration. Students begin the day with an original video that lays out a mystery and sets the stage for hands-on, STEM-based, career-focused activities. The activities, developed alongside K-12 educators, foster in-demand 21st century skills and fuse K-12 educational standards with North Carolina life science careers. Each activity closes with discussion linking the results to the overarching mystery and a video of the experiences of people who work in a related career. EASE builds STEM self-efficacy and nurtures the idea that local community colleges should be the first choice for postsecondary education during a formative period of STEM identity development. EASE has been openly available to all North Carolina community colleges for the past four years and has served 5000+ students.
Innovators: Erin Bingham, Tanya McGhee