The campus community is invited to open forums with finalists for the position of S&T’s founding director of the Kummer Center for Excellence in STEM Education. Candidates will share their vision for the center.  

The forums will be held: 

• 11-11:45 a.m. Monday, June 7, with Leo Clark, assistant principal, district stem coordinator and general/special education teacher for the Newburg R-II School District in Newburg, Missouri, via Zoom 
• 10:30-11:15 a.m. Tuesday, June 8, with Courtney Jones, district curriculum coordinator and science specialist for the Jefferson City School District in Jefferson City, Missouri, via Zoom 
• 10-10:45 a.m. Thursday, June 10, with Julia Cook, pre-engineering instructor at the Canadian Valley Technology Center in Chickasha, Oklahoma, via Zoom 
• 1:30-2:15 p.m. Friday, June 11, with Dr. Lainna Callentine, founder, curriculum developer, author and instructor for Sciexperience in West Chicago, Illinois, and pediatrician at Bolingbrook Christian Health Center in Bolingbrook, Illinois, via Zoom 
• 11-11:45 a.m. Monday, June 21 (canceled)

Limited seating will also be available in St. Pat’s A of the Havener Center during each open forum.  

Position description  

The founding director of the new Kummer Center for Excellence in STEM Education at Missouri S&T will develop the mission, vision and strategic plan for the center’s initial phase. The center’s goals are to lead and coordinate outreach initiatives for grades K-12 that leverage S&T’s expertise to improve educational experiences for students and instructional experiences for teachers in school districts in south-central Missouri; and to lead and coordinate efforts on S&T’s campus to improve learning and teaching experiences in STEM disciplines. The center will serve K-12 students and teachers primarily in the rural schools of south-central Missouri, aligned with the vision of the Kummer Institute. The director will collaborate with faculty on research opportunities and grants, using both the center on S&T’s campus and the mobile STEM Lab. The director will supervise multiple staff and teacher education students who will coordinate equity-focused STEM programming through field trips, summer camps and after-school activities. In addition, the director will collaborate with S&T faculty and the South Central Regional Professional Development Center to offer STEM professional development to teachers.