NSF funds South Dakota STEM education pathways

June 12, 2024

Dakota State University has joined 10 other state agencies in an effort to create pathways for young learners to become interested in STEM fields. This work will be funded through a National Science Foundation grant program aimed at enhancing the state's research and development competitiveness and promote scientific progress nationwide.

South Dakota was one of three states to receive the grant, titled Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Collaborations for Optimizing Research Ecosystems Research Infrastructure Improvement Program (E-CORE RII). New Hampshire and Maine were the other states.

Established in response to the 2022 study of EPSCoR, the Envisioning the Future of NSF EPSCoR report and the "CHIPS and Science Act of 2022," E-CORE RII is a new program that aims to further EPSCoR's programmatic goals by building capacity in one or more targeted research infrastructure cores within an EPSCoR-eligible jurisdiction's research ecosystem.

In South Dakota, this four-year grant will engage STEM researchers and K-12 teachers and students to create a pipeline of the next generation of the South Dakota STEM workforce by creating what could be a national model for connecting individuals who are geographically isolated to STEM education at the pre-college level.

“This is a phenomenal investment in STEM education in South Dakota, and we at Dakota State are particularly excited for the opportunity to advance professional development for computer science and computational thinking,” said Dr. Fenecia Homan, who is serving as the principal investigator from DSU. She is the Dean of DSU’s Governors Cyber Academy and K-12 Initiatives. Dr. David DeJong, Dean of the College of Education & Human Performance, and Education instructor Betsy Schamber are serving as senior personnel on the project for Dakota State.

Homan also expressed appreciation to colleagues at Black Hills State University for leading the effort with this grant. The additional members of South Dakota team include: Oglala Lakota College, the University of South Dakota, the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, South Dakota State University, the Augustana University Association, Northern State University, Sinte Gleska University, Sisseton Wahpeton College, the Sanford Underground Research Facility/South Dakota Science and Technology Authority, and the South Dakota Discovery Center.