SSU receives $7.9 million grant to expand STEM support in rural schools

Eighth grade science classes in dozens of rural schools across California and Texas will receive STEM curriculum and support from Sonoma State University thanks to a recent $7.9 million grant.

The U.S. Department of Education grant will go toward expanding the Rohnert Park university’s STEM and Computing Education Support program.

The program offers three main benefits for randomly selected schools: STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — curriculum, professional development and support and coaching from SSU faculty, said Laura Peticolas, an associate director of the school’s EdEon program, a STEM learning center, and principal investigator for the grant.

Fifty percent of the schools benefiting from the grant will be rural.

“Those three things combined will improve student learning, shown in a randomized controlled study in urban areas,” Peticolas said. “Now we’re working in mostly rural districts.”

The grant also will kick-off a five-year project to study the support program’s success. A pilot study will start this fall, followed by a two-year study and data analysis.

They will study 80 schools — half will receive the program’s support, and the other half will be business as usual so they can compare the results.

The goal of the study is to produce evidence of the program’s success, and down the road it will hopefully be a role model for teaching STEM to underrepresented communities across the country, Peticolas said.

“I think what's really compelling about our work is we're really trying to make a more equitable system for students to learn coding and engineering within a science, so that they will be able to meet those national standards, that will then translate to state and district science standards,” she said.

The curriculum focuses on introducing basic algorithmic thinking and coding, including graphic coding to command prompt coding, as well as science literacy.

Peticolas said the program already has been successful in introducing new technology and opportunities to kids in ninth grade classrooms across rural Northern California.

One example she gave was at Round Valley High School. A student there was able to get a job in graphic design due to exposure to computer programming.

Another example, at Ukiah High School, was a student who is getting their degree in computer science. And another Ukiah High student, who made a robotic car out of equipment provided by the program.

“I hope some of these students will find passion in science,” Peticolas said. “Coding and engineering is a fundamental part of being a scientist. But we're very cognizant of the fact that this is a public institution with people who will go in many different directions.

“We want to give them the skill sets in their science class that will allow them to thrive in today's technological society.”

You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8531 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter,) @alana_minkler.