STEM Education: The Passport to the Future

STEM Education:The Passport to the Future Kelly J. Cross (bio) and Princess I. Imoukhuede (bio) "Education is the passport to the future, tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today." —Malcolm X In 1937, Dr. Carter G. Woodson, at the urging of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, founded The Black History Bulletin (née The Negro History Bulletin), aimed at providing teachers, students, and the general reader with a foundation in Black history. Since then, the BHB has become one of the academic lighthouses, publishing articles and lesson plans that are designed to provide truth, historical knowledge, and insight into many of the critical issues facing the African American community. In The Mis-Education of the Negro, Woodson argues that, during the period from the end of the American Civil War to the early 1930s, the US education system controlled and oppressed Black students rather than help them achieve their potential. On its own, the ineffective US educational system has shown very little adjustment to the changing population or student needs, despite the efforts of prolific scholars like Dr. Geneva Gay. Recently there have been calls for reform of this broken system that does not serve either minoritized or majority students. The goal is to create an educational system and learning environment that spark the genius of Black and Brown students to lead us to a more just society. It is in this spirit of solidarity, of a shared commitment to Black racial healing, understanding, and justice, that we invited educators across the spectrum (K-12 teachers, college professors, and independent researchers) to join us in exploring the ways in which we teach, catalog, research, and elevate Black Genius in education, science, and engineering. This issue was organized around three main areas: Teaching Innovation, Educational Technology, and Equitable Assessment. The call to authors generated an all-female author lineup, with one male contributor adding a lesson plan. Our first author, Dr. Lauren Thomas-Quigley, shows how the systematic exclusion of Black and Brown people from science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education results in highly deficient technology. Dr. Thomas-Quigley inspires us to consider a better path, toward an Afrofuturism grounded in liberation and justice, if our full inclusion is realized. Our next author, Dr. Tamecia R. Jones, presents the necessary steps STEM education must take toward this equitable future—replacing our current hierarchy-based assessment with culturally grounded and equity-focused approaches of listening and being heard. According to Dr. Jones, "This is an attempt to offer suggestions for capturing genius via assessment strategies teachers can use in the classroom. The accompanying lesson plan integrates Black history of invention with the challenge to tie historical advancements in society to Black thought and handiwork." Our third article, written by doctoral candidate Rene Canady, provides a firsthand account of biomedical engineering study and the reeducation required for the discipline so that Black engineers can have their culture and contributions celebrated. Canady states, "The focus of this activity is also to show an engineering process that can contribute to racial inequities/equity, but with focus on the biomedical design process. Students will learn the basic concepts of bioengineering including investigating clinical needs, prototype design, and the [End Page 6] ethics within each." The final article, authored by software engineer and innovator Camille Camejo, offers a model for adult engineering education in the future. Together these manuscripts call us to reflect on the full spectrum of Black contributions to science and engineering, from our past to our key roles in the future. Click for larger view View full resolution [End Page 7] Kelly J. Cross Dr. Kelly J. Cross, assistant professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) at Georgia Tech and Emory University, is a data-informed, culturally responsive practitioner, researcher, and educational leader. She earned her Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Purdue University in 2007 and Master of Science in materials science and engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 2011. Cross completed her doctoral program in the Engineering Education Department at Virginia Tech in 2015 and worked as a postdoctoral researcher with the Illinois Foundry for Innovation in Engineering Education at the University of...