NTID Regional STEM Center
Overview
NTID established the NTID Regional STEM Center (NRSC) in partnership with various organizations to develop regional centers in parts of the country to deliver a variety of STEM programming. These partnerships enable NTID to expand geographic reach of services and activities supported by the college for students in middle and high school who are deaf and hard-of-hearing.
Partnership activities include:
- Promoting training and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields for middle school and high school students.
- Working with NTID faculty and staff to develop and provide postsecondary preparation activities for middle school and high school students.
- Providing resources and activities for teachers, interpreters, and vocational rehabilitation personnel.
- Developing partnerships with STEM-related business and industry to promote employment opportunities for individuals who are deaf and hard-of-hearing.
The NTID Regional STEM Center’s audiences are:
- Middle school and high students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing and their families
- Teachers of such students
- Educational interpreters
- Vocational rehabilitation personnel
- STEM employers
Goals and Objectives
The NRSC achieves its goals of improving access to STEM education and employment for students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing by:
- Enhancing understanding about opportunities for individuals who are deaf and hard-of-hearing in STEM careers among middle and high school students, teachers, counselors, and vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselors.
- Improving the instructional and technical skills of high school teachers in STEM areas.
- Establishing, expanding, and improving pathways for students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing to transition from high school to associate degrees, to baccalaureate degrees, and beyond in STEM areas.
- Improving access to learning for students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing who may be in mainstream classes, with or without support and access services.
- Developing employers' awareness of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals as potential employees and how they can be hired and successfully integrated into the STEM workforce.
- Improving the STEM knowledge and sign language skills of American Sign Language interpreters.
Southeast
Collaboration with Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind (AIDB)
The National Technical Institute for the Deaf has partnered with AIDB to form the NTID Regional STEM Center--Southeast, which is housed on the campus of AIDB in Talladega, AL. The mission of NRSC Southeast is to promote STEM education initiatives and career awareness for students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing in primary and secondary schools. This includes, but is not limited to, mainstream and residential programs. All programs and services offered by NRSC-Southeast are free of charge.
NRSC Southeast serves the following 12-state region:
| • Alabama | • Mississippi |
| • Arkansas | • North Carolina |
| • Florida | • Oklahoma |
| • Georgia | • South Carolina |
| • Kentucky | • Tennessee |
| • Louisiana | • Texas |
By way of NRSC, AIDB and their staff have developed a number of programs and collaborations for students of all ages. Serving 12 states in the Southeast, their goal is to encourage deaf and hard-of-hearing students to get involved and expand their understanding of STEM topics. They achieve this by offering wide-ranging educational activities and workshops. To learn more about these initiatives, visit AIDB’s NRSC homepage.
Summer Programs
• Improve academic skills
• Develop leadership skills
• Enhance college readiness
• Meet new friends
• Experience life on a college campus
STEM Academy is only offered to students who are at least 15 years old and in grades 10-12.
Students explore potential careers in cybersecurity through hands-on experiences in programming, digital forensics, cryptography, networking, and online safety.
GenCyber is offered to students in grades 9-12
At all of our programs, students spend time learning about exciting concepts, participating in fun activities, and meet other students just like them. Learn more about NRSC – Southeast summer programs at www.aidb.org/nrsc.
Workshops are offered addressing some of the differences working in STEM environments compared to non-STEM environments. We discuss strategies of how to approach STEM environments and provide links to a variety of resources for vocabulary and content comprehension. We provide opportunities for practice, modeling of teaming and how to look at/talk about the interpreting work product. These workshops are heavily dependent on participant interaction with fellow participants and the facilitators.
Specific content areas that can be discussed include but are not limited to; Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Math and Physics.
Mentoring:
Remote colleague mentoring is also offered. Semester long, individual or group format. We subscribe to the belief that no interpreter has “arrived” and that we all have something to learn.
About NRSC STEM Interpreting:
We are a group of postsecondary interpreters with more than 75 years of combined experience with an emphasis on STEM content areas. We love learning new things and from each other. Our passion is to develop personally and to inspire our colleagues to do the same, regardless of where they are on their professional path.
For information about STEM Interpreting, inquiries, or workshops, contact Cheryl Reminder at cardis@rit.edu
NTID Outreach Programs
The RIT/NTID Outreach team works with NRSC to coordinate middle and high school STEM programs. Our outreach team has years of experience with developing diverse and interactive camps and programs, and connecting with students, parents, and educators.
Learn more about NTID Outreach
Employer Information
NRSC works with the NTID Co-op and Career Center (NCCC) to provide employer training workshops and present to organizations about working with deaf and hard-of-hearing job candidates. NCCC assists deaf and hard-of-hearing students, graduating students and alumni with their job search and works with employers to facilitate hiring of highly qualified co-op students and graduates.
VR Information
Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) provides services to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing or to those who have disabilities and who need help to qualify for or to find a job. VR may assist with vocational training or college. VR services may include financial assistance, employment planning, counseling, transportation, and job placement assistance. A VR counselor, who determines eligibility for services, is assigned to each individual requesting assistance. States have various names for VR, and services vary depending on need and the state in which a student lives.
Partnerships
Project Fast Forward
Project Fast Forward helps deaf and hard-of-hearing high school students across the country get a jump start on a college degree by offering dual-credit college courses in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) areas. The ultimate goal of the program is to help deaf and hard-of-hearing students transition from high school to college and earn a college degree in a STEM field. The dual-credit courses are offered by Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf. The courses are taught at the students’ high schools, by their own teachers, during regular school hours. Courses are offered in schools for the deaf as well as public high schools with programs for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. The credits earned by students can be used toward a degree at RIT/NTID or any other college across the country that accepts the credit.
Learn more about Project Fast Forward
DeafTEC
Technological Education Center for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students, a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education National Center of Excellence, serves as a resource for high schools and community colleges that educate deaf and hard-of-hearing students in STEM-related programs and for employers hiring deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. NRSC works with DeafTEC to provide support in developing these STEM-related programs.
Contact Us
Mark Sommer
NRSC Project Director
Rochester Institute of Technology
National Technical Institute for the Deaf
52 Lomb Memorial Drive
Rochester, New York l4623
(585) 475-7695
masnca@rit.edu
Jason Roop
Director
NTID Regional STEM Center - Southeast
Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind
205 South Street E
Talladega, AL 35160
(256) 474-0452
Roop.Jason@aidb.org