Two ecosystems. One mission. This month, we explore how high-tech innovation and place-based community science work together to build purposeful STEM identity.
WELCOME TO STEMRIFIC DISPATCH
STEM has a heartbeat.
And if you listen closely, you’ll hear it in two places.
One pulse lives inside the high-tech walls of the Johnson STEM Activity Center — where robotics, design thinking, and engineering challenges prepare students to solve complex problems.
The other pulse lives in the soil and streams of West Atlanta — where the land, the watershed, and community history remind us that science is deeply human.
This month, I’m reflecting on what happens when we connect those two hearts.
Because when we bridge innovation and community, we don’t just teach science.
We build stewards.
www.johnsonstem.org
PULSE #1: Innovation at the Johnson STEM Activity Center
Inside the lab, the heartbeat sounds like motors, code, iteration, and teamwork.
But the real core is something deeper:
Empathy-Driven Engineering.
We aren’t just building machines to complete tasks.
We are training students to ask:
Who does this help?
When students understand that their design could one day support a neighbor, a local business, or a community need, engineering stops being abstract.
It becomes purposeful.
And that changes everything.
#ThatIsSTEMrific
Shoutout to the teams preparing for spring competitions — remember, the strongest part of your robot is the team standing behind it.
PULSE #2: Community at West Atlanta Watershed Alliance (WAWA)
STEM doesn’t only live in labs.
It lives along the banks of Proctor Creek.
It lives in the Afrofuturistic Outdoor Classroom.
It lives in students testing water quality in their own neighborhoods.
When a student steps into waders to collect real environmental data, their STEM identity shifts.
They aren’t just learning biology.
They are reclaiming their environment.
That is place-based belonging.
That is science with purpose.
If innovation is one pulse and community is the other, then classrooms are where the rhythm becomes action.
FROM IDEA TO ACTION: March Momentum
Bio-TECH Integration
The challenge:
Can we use lab technology to protect the heart of our watershed?
Try this PBL:
Students design low-cost environmental sensors (Micro:bits or Arduinos) to monitor:
Urban heat islands
Soil moisture
Water quality indicators
Student product:
Collect → Graph → Claim (CER)
My claim is…
My evidence is…
This matters because…
Spring STEM Challenge
Design a solution that protects something in your community.
Research → Build/Model → Present to an authentic audience.
Follow us across platforms and join the movement:
STEM Is Everywhere: Opportunities
These moments are ready-made entry points to connect curriculum to culture.
Leverage local events to connect engineering, environmental science, and community innovation.
1) February Events
African Americans in STEM - Highlight innovators whose work bridged community and innovation.
Engineers Week: February 22-28, 2026 - Highlighting the importance of engineering and the contributions of engineers to society.
2) MARCH Events
Women’s History Month 60+ Scientists and Engineers to know.
Total Lunar Eclipse March 2-3, 2026) - Are you in the path of the eclipse?
Atlanta Science Festival March 2-21, 2026- Experience over 150 interactive and educational events spread across 80+ venues, museums, parks, universities, libraries, and businesses.
COMMUNITY PULSE
I want to hear from you.
Which “heart” beats strongest in your classroom right now?
The thrill of the build (Engineering & Tech)
The connection to the Earth (Environmental Science)
The power of the team (Collaboration & SEL)
Reply and tell me. I’ll feature responses in the next issue.
Let’s innovate, educate, and collaborate—together. So, grab your favorite cosmic mug (maybe one from our STEMrific collection) and prepare for lift-off!
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