STEM Minute | 2024 best of the WAND STEM Series | Community

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — 2024 is about to end, and it was a big year for STEM education in central Illinois.

A wide variety of programs have made their mark on students, one lesson as a time. While STEM education can mean many different things, one camp at Millikin University gave students a chance to explore the film industry and the technology behind it.

Johnny Power, an instructor of arts and creative media, at Millikin University said, "Anyone who has any interest within that broad range of topics can take the camp and feel like they are involved in it even say if you know running a camera isn't what you wanted to do but you like doing lights."

The impact on kids around Illinois didn't stop there at Millikin University, they also hosted explore STEM Day. The event gave students the opportunity to see different experiments and spark their interests in science.

Dr. Paris Barnes, a professor of inorganic chemistry at Millikin University said, "If you are interested in science find what interests you and pursue it."

Students were able to get experience in the lab while learning about a wide variety of science concepts. Dr. Barnes took an opportunity to share his love for science and stress the importance of being a well-rounded student.

"I think literacy in every subject is really important. We need to not only be able to look at what's going on in the world around us, but we need to understand how to explain it because it helps us make informed opinions and decisions about things around us and that includes science."

Younger kids also got a chance to explore everything a STEM education has to offer this year. Barkstall Elementary School in Champaign helped their students find a love for science and expressing their creativity in a unique way. The students celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday by creating their own balloons inspired by the ones that they saw in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

Esther Ferguson, the principal at Barkstall Elementary School said, "They take a book that they have been reading. They first learned about the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade the science behind it. They watched YouTube videos They read books about it and then chose a character from a book that they enjoyed the most."

The students also learned the importance of teamwork and problem solving while building their balloons.

2024 was a big tear for technology with many programs highlighting the importance of understanding new technological advancements. Students at Bement Middle School took this an opportunity to learn how to build and fly drones.

Hope Walker, the STEM instructor at Bement Middle School, said, "I'm hoping they get some more ideas of what STEM can do for them in the future, especially with the drones there's a lot of opportunity."

Creating exciting fun experiences that students will never forget while preparing them for their future.

Carl Scherer, a Caterpillar design engineer and Mt. Zion robotics team instructor, said, "I think as an engineer I see that it's important to bring up the next generation of engineers."

As the Mt. Zion robotics team strives for success, they are also learning important engineering concepts. They build their robots piece by piece with the goal of being the best and preparing for their future.

"I think we have a lot of problems in the world that we can advance technologies to help resolve and the students always have all kinds of new ideas."

Bringing to light the fact that education is much more than sitting in a classroom by using immersive experiences to leave a lasting impression about the importance of STEM education. Next week will highlight a few more of the programs that make learning fun and accessible for students here in Central Illinois as the door gets ready to close on 2024.