NC State's College of Education Pushes Boundaries with Funding

Empowering Education: NC State's College of Education Powers Up with University Grants

Founded in 1887, NC State University has granted University Foundation Grants to two initiatives led by faculty members in the College of Education. The funding program aims to encourage creative ideas that improve university experiences for undergraduates and graduates. Proposals chosen through a competitive process must show a noteworthy effect on students and the ability to be replicated in the future. "The Collaborative Leadership Seminar for School Counseling and Educational Leadership Trainees," under the direction of Associate Professor Lisa Bass and Assistant Professor Rolanda Mitchell, is one of the sponsored initiatives. Over two years, $50,000 will be funded for this initiative.

Lead researcher in Mathematics Education and Special Education Associate Professor Jessica Hunt leads the project "Fostering Learning, Identity, and Participation within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (FLIP-STEM)". Several important partners support her, including Taryn Shelton, the K–12 Data Science Coordinator at the Data Science Academy; Rachel Levy, the Director of the Data Science Academy; Amy Walter, a Research Scholar at the Friday Institute; Krista Glazewski, the Executive Director of the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and Associate Dean for Translational Research; and Braska Williams, the Director of the NC-MSEN Pre-College Program. The project has received money totaling $49,403 for two years. 

The goal of the University Foundation Grant-funded Collaborative Leadership Seminar is to engage students in hands-on learning activities such as field trips and case studies, aiming to enhance their understanding of professional responsibilities and emphasize the value of teamwork. Ultimately, the seminar aims to equip students with the tools necessary to establish productive alliances within their industry. The seminar course will adopt the Culturally Affirming Shared Leadership Framework as its paradigm of collaborative leadership, aiming to facilitate discussions among school counselors, practicing educational leaders, and pre-service educators to enhance the delivery of mental health services to teachers and students. The focus will be on improving efficacy and efficiency in these services through collaborative efforts. 

Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to engage in professional development activities, hear from experts and guest speakers, contribute to the development of educational models for future cohorts in counseling and educational leadership, and attend weekend retreats focused on key ideas and themes. Mitchell sees significant potential in the curriculum to impact students in NC State's Counselor Education and Educational Leadership departments by equipping them with collaborative leadership skills to address ongoing mental health challenges in American classrooms. By piloting the seminar at NC State, Mitchell aims for students to apply this knowledge to their current and future roles in local educational settings, benefiting K–12 schools and surrounding districts. FLIP-STEM, one of the three Interdisciplinary Research Hubs under the College of Education's 2023–2030 Strategic Plan, collaborates with middle and high school students to develop technology promoting STEM careers and community problem-solving.

With additional funding from the University Foundation Grant, FLIP-STEM will partner with the North Carolina Math-Science Education Network (NC-MSEN) Pre-College Program. Together, they will offer design justice-infused data science experiences through weekend workshops. These workshops, focused on teachers and students, will be conducted in collaboration with the NC State Data Science Academy. In the second year of funding, the project team aims to expand its impact in rural communities by introducing place-based weekend day camps and leveraging existing relationships with teachers and students. According to Hunt, these camps will integrate local programs and resources with data science and hub concepts. Rather than creating content exclusively for students, they seek to enhance programming that connects data science with issues of personal, community, and cultural significance. As part of their commitment to FLIP-STEM, the project team has established partnerships with two rural school districts. They have conducted focus groups with teachers and students to adopt design approaches that prioritize integrating teacher and student perspectives into the development of community solutions.

Editor’s Note:

Two noteworthy projects in the College of Education have recently received money from NC State's University Foundation Grants Program. These initiatives show NC State's commitment to using cutting-edge strategies to advance community involvement and instructional methods. Through the development of strategic alliances and interdisciplinary collaboration, these projects seek to create educational innovations that are both firmly based on addressing community needs and transformative. The grant demonstrates NC State's dedication to leadership in education and its proactive attempts to have a significant influence both inside and outside of the classroom.

Skoobuzz congratulates the College of Education for receiving grants, this addition will be used for the well-being of students as well as add new chapters in transformative educational history.