Virtual PD     | Join MnSTA    |   

Minnesota STEM Network • 2015 Conference

April 14 - 15, 2015

Tuesday, April 14 – Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Continuing Education and Conference Center

St. Paul Campus of the University of Minnesota

This two-day conference brings together the two networks to ensure every Minnesota young person has access to high quality STEM Education and opportunities to build 21st century skills.  Attendees will share high quality practices, build partnerships, and advance policy to increase student engagement in and outside of the school day.

Mark your calendar for April 14-15, 2015 and Register Today!

More info here.

Conference Statement

This two-day conference brings together the MN STEM network and Ignite Afterschool Network to ensure every Minnesota young person has access to high quality STEM Education and opportunities to build 21st century skills.  Attendees will share high quality practices, build partnerships, and advance policy to increase student engagement in and outside of the school day.

Conference Themes

While this conference will address issues in common to both networks, it will also contain sessions specific to each network.

 Systems Building and Partnerships

  • Fitting systems and partnerships to different communities: urban, suburban, and rural areas
  • Working across sectors – schools, communities, non-profits, businesses, museums, & universities
  • Highlighting innovative systems of support for STEM & Afterschool learning
  • Working together as staff, administrators, and stakeholder

Integrating 21st Century Skills and STEM

  • Building a shared understanding of quality in Afterschool and STEM learning
  • Expanding access and engagement in STEM learning & Afterschool programs
    • Attracting more girls/women and underrepresented peoples to STEM fields
    • Increasing the STEM pipeline and knowledge of the variety of STEM careers
    • Ensuring a competitive workforce by 2020
  • Exploring high-quality curriculum and activities for STEM learning in-and-out of school

Sharing Your Stories & Successes: Data, Evaluation, and Messaging

  • Using stories and data to communicate effectively to various audiences
  • Sharing tangible and cost-effective approaches of documenting and data analysis
  • Measuring outcomes of success in Afterschool and STEM programming

Conference Happenings

  • Keynotes
  • Breakout Sessions
  • Workshops
  • Exhibitors
  • Open Forums
    • The forums will be Open Space Technology - allowing for informal, yet in-depth discussion of topics relevant to a convener and other conference attendees. Participants can use these discussions to:
      • Discuss current issues in STEM and Afterschool
      • Network and explore new partnerships
      • Stimulate connections between Afterschool and STEM learning
      • Brainstorm new projects and innovative solutions