Teaching Students with Disabilities STEM Career Skills
The lack of support in public education for students with disabilities inspired Blumenfeld to create Catalyst. The program operates within North Carolina State University and is built on multiple prongs of skill building.
Catalyst exposes students like Chandler Jenkins to STEM content they otherwise wouldn’t have access to in high school — everything from nanotechnology to textile engineering, Blumenfeld says.
All of the learning is hands on, so the students use computers and Raspberry Pi for coding, as well as lab equipment such as electron microscopes.
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“My favorite part of the program was actually getting introduced to different types of jobs and careers,” Jenkins says. He now has a scholarship to study computer science with the goal of working in cybersecurity.
Students also learn workforce readiness skills, such as budgeting and resume writing. They also meet with professionals to practice their professional interpersonal skills.
“We have companies like IBM come in and interview the kids in mock interviews, so they get practice in that,” says Blumenfeld.
Finally, students get STEM internships as part of the program. This gives them first-hand experience in the field and allows them to apply for college with two or three internships on their resumes.
“We can’t just give kids accommodations. We need innovative programs like this, that connect all the prongs,” Blumenfeld says.
Changing the Minds of Students and Professionals Through Awareness
Beyond introducing students with disabilities to STEM careers, Blumenfeld’s other goal through the Catalyst program is to change people’s thinking.