Reinhardt receives federal grant for STEM education

By Erika Neldner

A nearly $1 million grant will provide enhanced science and math education at Reinhardt University to students seeking to be high school teachers.

The National Science Foundation awarded Reinhardt University the five-year Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program grant to create the STEM Teacher Education and Development Program.

Provost Mark Roberts and Associate Provost Jacob Harney, who also serves as the dean of Reinhardt’s School of Mathematics and Sciences, spearheaded the grant writing project with several university education and science faculty. Other faculty involved in writing the grant include education faculty Tami Smith and math and sciences faculty Dr. Irma Santoro and Dr. Elizabeth Smith.

“Reinhardt is proud to receive this grant which will provide life-changing opportunities for our students and impact science and math education in Cherokee and Pickens counties,” said Reinhardt President Kina S. Mallard. “I commend the creative and collaborative efforts of the Reinhardt faculty who imagined and wrote the grant. They listened to the needs of our students and our communities as Reinhardt continues to pave the way for student success in education, math and science.”

Over five years, Reinhardt is expected to receive $930,000 for the STEM Teacher Education and Development Program and will fund student scholarships, teacher stipends, research and a STEM Summer Camp.

The program will serve Reinhardt students, as well as Cherokee County School District and Pickens County School District teachers. It also opens up scholarship opportunities for students who receive their associate’s degree in a related field from Chattahoochee Technical College and enroll at Reinhardt to finish their bachelor’s degree.

“We are designing a program that is going to develop high school math and science teachers,” Harney said. “The Scholars will gain teaching experience by working side-by-side with certified teachers and professors as instructors in a STEM Summer Camp.”

The scholarship funds will be distributed to eligible Reinhardt juniors and seniors who major in STEM biology or math. The Reinhardt graduates will then take their knowledge to a Title I public school in Cherokee or Pickens County and teach for at least two years.