UTEP, Fabens ISD Awarded NSF Grant to Strengthen STEM Education
EL PASO, Texas (Oct. 1, 2024) – The Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é of Texas at El Paso and Fabens Independent School District (Fabens ISD) are working together to strengthen science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching practices across Fabens ISD schools. This initiative is funded by a new grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Using regional academic data that assesses student performance, UTEP researchers and Fabens ISD educators will identify subjects and coursework in need of improvement. They will then create a targeted academic improvement plan, which includes grant writing mentorship for educators to sustain support for the region.
“We are fortunate to have received funding to collaborate and foster new partnerships,” said Isela Peña, Ed.D., assistant professor in UTEP’s College of Education and co-principal investigator (Co-PI) of the NSF grant. “Our goal is to bridge theory and practice by working collectively with P-12 practitioners. Hopefully, we will set a successful foundation for this collaboration model in our region, and maybe one day nationally.”
The initiative is led by UTEP’s Department of Educational Leadership and Foundations (EDLF) within the College of Education and Fabens ISD. The team includes faculty from the EDLF department, central office administrators, school leaders and educators from high, middle and elementary schools. The project will begin with an initial kickoff session, followed by five workshops focused on fostering cohesion between institutions.
“The EDLF department regularly seeks opportunities for collaborative research to help both local districts and UTEP faculty elevate their practices,” said UTEP associate professor and Co-PI Rodolfo Rincones, Ph.D. “However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, many of these relationships have eroded. As educators, we believe that many issues can be solved through communication.”
Fabens ISD Interim Superintendent Martin Torres approached Rincones and Peña with the opportunity to collaborate on the NSF grant in the fall of 2023. Together, they finalized the project design in August, creating a year-long initiative that the department hopes will expand in the future.
“Collaboration is the cornerstone of progress in education,” Torres said. “This partnership with UTEP represents a significant step forward for our district, allowing us to enhance STEM teaching practices and ultimately better serve our students. Together, we are not just investing in resources, but in the future of our community.”
The NSF grant totals more than $98,000, and the program will run for a full year.
“We are proud to provide stipends for teachers, books, materials, and more,” Rincones said. “We are maximizing this opportunity, and we hope that the benefits of this experience will spread throughout the region, raising support for our educators and uniting our communities.”
About The Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é of Texas at El Paso
The Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é of Texas at El Paso is America’s leading Hispanic-serving university. Located at the westernmost tip of Texas, where three states and two countries converge along the Rio Grande, 84% of our 25,000 students are Hispanic, and more than half are the first in their families to go to college. UTEP offers 170 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs at the only open-access, top-tier research university in America.
Last Updated on October 02, 2024 at 12:00 AM | Originally published October 02, 2024
By MC Staff UTEP Marketing and Communications
