Conference: Annual Rural STEM Learning Summit

农村社区往往缺乏非正规学习机会。农村STEM学习峰会将促进农村STEM教育工作者和管理人员，专业人员和组织的合作和支持。研究表明，农村社会企业，区域网络和延伸的邻近性在催化创新和提供克服这些独特挑战的机会方面具有优势。然而，农村STEM举措面临着共同的障碍，例如物理距离，缺乏基础设施，个人能力有限以及在发展和维护STEM生态系统方面资源紧张。会议将提供一个重要的机会，以加强对这些领域创新的了解，并分享经验教训和促进合作。重点将是集体影响，农村赋权和成功的农村STEM计划。主题将包括研究和评估，艺术融合，伙伴关系，与资源不足的人群合作，以及建立农村STEM身份。会议将采用多种形式，包括主题演讲，简短（“flash”）会谈，介绍项目和想法的快速概述，提供现成活动和资源的研讨会，由专家，项目负责人和研究人员领导的促进研讨会，以及非正式的机会，以满足那些有共同利益的人。会议将采用混合形式，提供面对面和数字选项，以支持参与。会议将使登记者参与便利的讨论，旨在围绕共同利益将与会者分组。这些群体将作为一个团队在会议上导航，并合作开发可以在本地测试并更广泛共享的共享实践/产品。通过让各种各样的农村利益攸关方、联邦和州政府机构、观点、观点和地区参与进来，会议将为促进多样性、公平和包容提供一个独特的机会。会议将举办后续会议，以促进持续合作，并为年度农村STEM教育会议建立势头。本次会议由推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划资助，该计划支持以下项目：（a）促进研究和实践，考虑非正式STEM学习在STEM中的公平和归属感的作用;（B）促进STEM中的个人和教育成功;（c）推动公众参与科学发现;（d）培养对STEM职业的兴趣;（e）促进STEM学习。（e）为有效的非正式STEM学习建立和加强理论和经验基础;（f）提高社区活力;和/或（g）加强科学传播和公众参与和理解STEM和STEM过程。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过以下方式支持使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估。

Rural communities often lack access to informal learning opportunities. The Rural STEM Learning Summit will promote collaboration and support for rural STEM educators and administrators, professionals, and organizations. Research demonstrates the strengths of rural social enterprises, regional networks, and extended proximity in catalyzing innovation and providing opportunities to overcome these unique challenges. However, rural STEM initiatives face common barriers, such as physical distance, lack of infrastructure, limited individual capacity and stretched resources in developing and maintaining STEM ecosystems. The conference will provide a critical opportunity for enhancing knowledge around innovation in these areas and sharing lessons learned with and advancing collaboration. The focus will be on collective impact, rural empowerment, and successful rural STEM programs. Topics will include research and evaluation, arts integration, partnerships, working with under-resourced populations, and building rural STEM identity. The conference will use a variety of formats, including keynotes, brief ("flash") talks presenting quick overviews of programs and ideas, hosted workshops providing ready-made activities and resources, facilitated workshops led by experts, project directors and researchers, and informal opportunities to meet those with common interests. The conference will be structured as a hybrid format with in-person and digital options to support participation. The conference will engage registrants in facilitated discussions aimed at grouping participants around common interests. These cohorts will navigate the conference as a team and collaborate on developing a shared practice/product that can be tested locally and shared more broadly. By engaging a wide variety of rural stakeholders, federal and state governmental institutions, perspectives, viewpoints, and regions, the conference will offer a distinct opportunity for promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. The conference will host follow-up sessions that will foster continuing collaboration and build momentum for an annual rural STEM education conference. This conference is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which supports projects that: (a) contribute to research and practice that considers informal STEM learning's role in equity and belonging in STEM; (b) promote personal and educational success in STEM; (c) advance public engagement in scientific discovery; (d) foster interest in STEM careers; (e) create and enhance the theoretical and empirical foundations for effective informal STEM learning; (f) improve community vibrancy; and/or (g) enhance science communication and the public's engagement in and understanding of STEM and STEM processes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.