First Posted: 12/16/2014

This story about the implementation of STEM across the Public Schools of Robeson County originally appeared as a two-part series in print edition of The Robesonian. Both parts have been collected here. — Editor

PEMBROKE — As a 10th-grader at Purnell Swett, Jocelyn Bullard is only in her second year of high school, but she is doing college-level research with engineering.

Bullard recently put her interest in science and math to the test as she and other students assisted Ryan Emanuel on an environmental field trip to the North Carolina Indian Cultural Center. Emanuel is a hydrologist with the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at North Carolina State University.

“We measured the height of the water and the flow at the cultural center. We talked about it in the classroom before going into the field,” Bullard said. “When it is more hands-on, you learn more. It adds to the knowledge you learned in the class. It was fun.”

Bullard hopes to put her interest in math and science toward a career as a pharmacist or other specialist in the medical field. That is the goal of this STEM — an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics — project at Purnell Swett.

The program is coordinated by the school’s Indian Education Youth Development specialist, but is open to all Purnell Swett students.

“They have checked water quality and tested trees to see life cycles. It involves physical science, earth and biology and there is a continuous project of testing water quality,” said Mark Deese, the Indian Education Youth Development specialist. “We have tested in the Lumber River, Princess Anne at Orrum, Harpers Ferry outside Pembroke and now at the North Carolina Indian Cultural Center.”

Deese said the STEM project began in 2012 with a speaker series and transitioned into hands-on projects with different professors and guests.

The program targets students in ninth through 12th grade, but is based around the Science Department.

“The goal is to get the kids involved in science and engineering because those are the jobs of the future, and to kind of supplement some of the activities that are going on in the classroom by showing them the skills learned in the classroom are a baseline for these jobs,” Deese said.

Deese coordinated the project. The group has sponsored an engineering initiatives campaign since 2012, which invites alumni from Purnell Swett who are now engineers in their careers. Business professionals discuss their road to college and their careers during the campaign.

The engineers include Emanuel, who is doing an environmental assessment of the North Carolina Indian Cultural Center, and Robin Lowery, a chemical engineer with Native Resource Group in Raleigh.

Connie Locklear, Director of the Public Schools of Robeson County’s Indian Education Program also serves on the North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center board.

“Today’s society has a demand for STEM-related jobs; therefore, it is important that we begin preparing our students with the necessary skills to be successful in this technology age,” Locklear said. “Students who major in STEM-connected fields are more likely to be employed than those who do not. According to the STEM Education Coalition, the U.S. must increase the enrollment of students in STEM careers in order to be globally competitive.”

Meteorologist puts STEM in students’ forecast

Brandon Locklear knows weather. As a senior meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Raleigh, Locklear puts his profession to work every day to protect lives across the region.

“I have 15 years at the National Weather Service. The one reason that I am there today is because of AISES — American Indian Science and Engineering Society,” he said. “While at N.C. State University, AISES gave me an opportunity through a paid internship at the weather service in Raleigh and I did so well, I guess that they wanted me to work there full-time once I graduated.”

Locklear spoke to students at Purnell Swett High School this fall through a special STEM project.

STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. For the past two years, the school has welcomed engineering presenters and researchers to talk with students about careers in STEM-related fields.

Locklear is a 1995 graduate of Purnell Swett High School. In addition to issuing weather forecasts for the region, he provided weather reports for the Secret Service for Obama’s barricade while he was Raleigh. His team also helped get Bill Clinton to safety when a tornado came close to his location during a speaking event.

“In the National Weather Service, there are all kinds of opportunities, including Alaska and Hawaii. You have meteorologist in the private sector, marine biologist, oceanographers and forensic meteorology is also really cool. It involves using weather to predict when certain crimes happened,” Locklear said. “You could be a meteorologist in the Air Force. The military has all these drones, so they have to produce forecast to use a drone. Weather is not going anywhere. It is a good job.”

Locklear talked extensively to the students about how weather influences the U.S. economy through storms or drought, and how these conditions influence food and commodity prices. He also discussed how he uses math equations to calculate weather.

For students like 11th-grader Jaimson Lowery, the STEM Project has changed his perspective on his future, which in turn caused him to change courses.

“I already have changed my classes. Originally I was going to take calculus this year, but I changed to chemistry because I want to go in AP,” Lowery said. “Since I am going into the medical field and engineering, I thought it would be very helpful.”

Eleventh-grader Cetera Hunt plans to become a midwife or pursue a career in nursing. She said Locklear’s presentation was impressive.

“We could relate to him and how he grew up and became interested in weather by his grandfather. Since he graduated from here, it makes me think I can do the same,” she said. “To see he worked hard and how it was a struggle and he liked traveling. I want to do that, too.”

Brandon Locklear said that, more than anything, he hopes the students will see other futures along their path and put their education to work.

“I wanted to convey to them if you just stick with it there will be ups and there will be downs, but we can persevere and be successful with anything you put your mind to,” he said. “It doesn’t matter that you come from a small rural county.”