Memphis Teacher Residency has partnered with The National Civil Rights Museum to address the need for STEM teachers of color in Memphis.
Memphis Teacher Residency is a teacher training program that seeks to address education inequality by placing teachers in high need schools in Memphis. The fellowship launched between MTR, the NCRM, and Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics will bring college students to Memphis in the summer of 2022 for an intensive STEM-focused summer camp internship program that will use innovative math teaching techniques to stimulate and encourage middle school students from underserved public schools across the city.
“In response to our city’s desperate need for many more math and science teachers of color, MTR is excited to partner with the National Civil Rights Museum to recruit, train and support high-potential teachers through this fellowship,” says David Montague, Executive Director of MTR.
“We’re grateful that the NCRM is participating in such a meaningful way toward equal and high-quality education in our city through the development of a pipeline of well-trained STEM teachers grounded in instructional and cultural competencies,” he says.
This fellowship, known as The Marjorie Lee Browne STEM Education Fellowship, is intended to inspire young, talented undergraduate persons of color to pursue a career in STEM education in underserved city schools via MTR’s rigorous teacher training program. The NCRM will work alongside MTR to equip fellows with a historical understanding of the Civil Rights Movement and how it intersects with education, past and present.
Terri Freeman, former President of the National Civil Rights Museum, oversaw the launch of the partnership and Fellowship in 2020, stating, “The National Civil Rights Museum believes that educational equity is a critical civil rights issue in this 21st century. We believe students who are often disenfranchised must be exposed to the training and educational curriculum that will allow them to thrive in the future.”
“We know that STEM careers will continue to be important and lucrative in this information age. But it will be just as important that young people understand their history and how that history relates to STEM fields,” Freeman explained.
“We believe the Marjorie Lee Browne STEM Education Fellowship allows us to provide that context and we are very happy to partner with the Memphis Teacher Residency to develop the next generation of well-rounded STEM leaders,” Freeman added.
The fellowship will include:
- A four-week summer internship in Memphis (June 5 – July 2, 2022)
- A position as a Teaching Assistant and Counselor at a math-focused STEM camp for rising 7th-grade students.
- Intensive pedagogical and content training through the MTR internship experience.
- Additional trainings on cultural competencies, the Civil Rights Movement, faith, and the impact of each of these on education itself.
- A $1,500 award, a $1000 summer stipend and $1,000 in undergraduate tuition assistance.
As part of the Marjorie Lee Browne STEM Education Fellowship, the Browne STEM Discovery Camp plans to support underserved middle school students seeking to study STEM fields in college and beyond. Fellows will intern at the Browne STEM Discovery Camp and will use a curriculum created by BEAM –– Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics.
“In support of MTR’s dual teacher recruitment and student academic extension efforts, Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics (BEAM) will contribute curriculum to the collaborative effort between MTR and the National Civil Rights Museum,” says Dan Zaharopol, Founder of Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics (BEAM). “Our curriculum has been successfully used to help underserved students enter advanced study in mathematics. Since 2011, BEAM has served over 600 students in New York and Los Angeles, and we look forward to the expansion of our resources to MTR’s efforts in Memphis.”
