The following is a press release from WakeEd Partnership
RALEIGH, N.C. — This morning, US2020 announced that WakeEd Partnership (WakeEd), a business-backed nonprofit organization committed to improving public education in the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS), has been awarded the US2020 STEM Mentoring Award for Excellence in Public-Private Partnerships. The STEM Mentoring Awards are a national platform to celebrate and encourage exceptional work in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) mentoring. US2020 will recognize the award winners today in Washington D.C., at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.
WakeEd is being recognized for two programs that they facilitate in partnership with the Wake County Public School System. SummerSTEM and World Café engage STEM businesses and organizations in supporting educators by helping them bring real-world lessons to the classroom.
During SummerSTEM, 100 WCPSS educators engage in hands-on professional development experiences. Over eight days, they are immersed in STEM companies from across the Triangle, embedded in Wake Technical Community College classrooms and coached in lesson design and project-based learning. SummerSTEM exists to enrich each educator’s understanding of the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in STEM careers.
At WakeEd’s annual STEM and Global Studies World Café, business, nonprofit, and government leaders collaborate with educators during focused networking sessions. WakeEd matches educational needs with time and talent resources to help bring classroom and school-wide projects to life. World Café was created to help students meet the challenges of a fast-paced, dynamic world.
“We are honored and excited to receive this prestigious award,” says Steve Parrott, President of WakeEd. “We have worked tirelessly at WakeEd to ensure that our teachers are prepared to provide students in the Wake County Public School System with the tools they need to succeed, and we are so excited to see it paying off for everyone involved.”
About WakeEd Partnership
WakeEd Partnership is an independent, nonprofit organization comprised of business and community leaders committed to improving public education. Since 1983, the Partnership has advocated for excellent educational opportunities for all students in the Wake County Public School System. For more information, please visit www.wakeed.org.
About US2020
US2020, a division of Citizen Schools, developed from a White House call to generate large-scale innovative solutions to our STEM education challenges. Its mission is to dramatically scale the number of STEM professionals mentoring and teaching students through hands-on projects with a focus on serving underrepresented communities. Through partnerships at the national level and coalitions at the city level, US2020 has built a network of more than 350 organizations in 13 cities actively working to scale the STEM mentoring field. To learn more, visit www.us2020.org.
