Browsing by Subject "Engineering -- Study and teaching"

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    Native American Students' Perceptions of the Manoomin STEM Camp
    (2013) Kowalczak, Courtney C
    Tribal governments are facing harsh realities as climate change, development, and economics threaten not only the sustainability of the natural resources but also their culture. There is a growing need to recruit Native American students into STEM fields to meet the needs of their tribal communities. Tribal communities are seeking educational interventions that will motivate their young people to go to college and pursue STEM fields that will benefit future generations. The Manoomin (“wild rice” in the Ojibwe language) camp is a place-based American Indian youth science research program based in Cloquet, MN. This camp is a result of partnerships between University of Minnesota researchers, Fond du Lac Reservation natural resource managers, local teachers, Fond du Lac Tribal & Community College, and community members, working together to integrate meaningful research with emphasis on the cultural significance of wild rice on the Fond du Lac Reservation. The study described how the students in the Manoomin STEM camp felt that camp impacted their sense of community, their academic success, opportunities for careers, connection with their culture, and influenced their attitudes and behavior. These results holds out hope that the Manoomin STEM camp model is an educational intervention that will lead to academic success and future generations of STEM professionals.