To a senior Superintendent of one of the best rated school systems in the state, it seemed strange to be talking with two business executives about the importance of exciting students about learning STEM. It begged the question of what was in it for them. The answer was startling.
Dr. Ashley Hinson, then Superintendent of Surry County Schools in North Carolina, found that Joe Kronner and Sam McCormick were advocating on behalf of the regional economic developers and CEOs of some of the largest companies in the region. The message was both simple and startling. They told Hinson the findings of their quantitative research among industry CEOs from across the region. Industry CEOs said that economic prosperity depends almost totally on the school systems’ ability to graduate students with STEM knowledge and 21st Century Job Skills. Hinson’s first reaction was natural. Surry County Schools was one of the top rated systems in the state. Surely this could not apply to his school system.
They were about to lose Hinson’s attention until they talked about having visited high schools that had 30% to 40% of their graduates choosing majors in STEM fields and broad scale middle school afterschool STEM teams that attracted large populations of diverse students who were suddenly excited about learning STEM.
McCormick, a highly experienced consumer product marketing executive, described the national STEM education crisis as a marketing problem. McCormick framed the problem in marketing terms. “It is virtually impossible to compel someone to do something they see as being both unpleasant and unnecessary. That is precisely the way the majority of our middle school students’ view learning STEM subjects. The only way to change the paradigm is to create environments that cause students to have a passion for learning STEM.”
Dr. Hinson, who had long been a proponent for the importance of having a STEM education, was intrigued but not convinced.
Kronner explained that afterschool STEM teams are the low hanging fruit opportunity to excite kids about learning STEM. He talked about a highly successful pilot program in Forsyth County that put a robotics STEM team in every middle school. The program partnered business and educators in a highly successful effort to raise afterschool STEM teams to the same level of prestige as athletics.
Having a strong passion for the value of afterschool programs and STEM education, Hinson decided this was worth exploring further. Dr. Hinson facilitated a meeting with John Springthorpe, President of SouthData, Inc. Springthorpe quickly saw the benefits of the STEM and soft skills the students were learning. Springthorpe suggest engaging Dr. Little of Mount Airy City Schools. During the next meeting with the two Superintendents, Springthorpe explained his interest in participating in this program. He was candid with the two Superintendents and said, “I realize that I am sitting here with Superintendents of two of the top performing school systems in the state. I have to be honest and tell you that I have trouble hiring your graduates because they do not have either the STEM skills or soft skills that I need in my organization. This STEM team program excites me because it builds precisely the skills that I need in my workforce. I am not interested in doing this if we just engage the 6% or 7% that normally major in STEM fields. For my business and most of the other businesses in the region to grow and prosper, we need the majority of students excited about STEM.”
From that moment on there was no doubt that this was John Stringthorpe’s program. Springthorpe made the commitment, “I will guarantee that you will have the sponsorship money necessary to put 2 robotics STEM teams in every middle school in the two school systems. I will also commit to find a technologist from business to mentor every team. ” Springthorpe enlisted Alan Connolly, Executive Vice President of South Data to help engage other business partners. Alan reached out to several other major employers in the county. He asked them to help sponsor the robotics teams in every middle school and to encourage their employees to volunteer to be mentors to the teams.
Both Hinson and Springthorpe later spoke about having wanted to find a project to develop a meaningful way for business and K-12 educators to partner, but they never found the right opportunity. “John’s leadership and the local business community’s support together with the leadership of the school systems were critical to the success of the program. And thanks to expertise provided by Kronner and McCormick the school systems were able to engage the business community in a meaningful project that delighted everyone involved. Additionally, they had the knowledge and ability to connect the team with knowledgeable people who shared their experiences, planning templates and coach/mentor training. Starting 14 teams while planning for a Surry County Tournament with 70 volunteers would have been overwhelming without their coaching along the way.” Dr. Hinson said as he reflected on the journey.
“We had 140 students participate and now have elementary schools and high schools wanting to 
participate next year. One of the most exciting things is how the program helped students with different learning styles and learning disabilities. Students who struggled academically for years suddenly found success with this program. The success the students enjoyed with robotics carried over into their classroom performance. It was an amazing experience the Saturday morning of the tournament to see a gym full of parents, siblings, friends and business leaders cheering on the students as their robots did battle. Every child was a winner for having experienced this program. It was truly one of the best things I did during my career as a Superintendent.” Dr. Hinson said with a smile.
Hinson, McCormick and Kronner have continued their journey to excite students about learning STEM. Kronner set the bar high for the Must-Innov8, Inc. team when he said, “We will not be successful until we cause 60% of our students to be excited about STEM. The industry CEOs that we interviewed assured us that the bar needs to be set that high to fuel the growth and development of our industries.” It may sound like the impossible dream, but these men are convinced it can happen. More importantly they have the knowledge and expertise to help communities be successful in meeting the challenge! Contact us for more information.
[…] The faculty’s very first day at work involved a brainstorming session with leaders from busine…. During that session the faculty learned the importance of instilling 21st Century Job Skills. It is one thing to talk about the importance of critical thinking, collaboration, problem solving and innovation skills in the abstract. It is quite another thing to visit companies who are thriving because their employees use all of those skills and more in the normal course of business. […]