STEAM D.R.E.A.M.

1. We are committed to solving the national shortage of African American youth going into STEM careers with a contemporary one of a kind initiative.

2. The use of a hybrid edutainment, theatrical STEM and Gilberts Behavioral Engineering Model. The program takes youth from losing their sight to getting a vision. Corporate, and healthcare institutions interact with a combination of a reward and tracking from inception to fruition cradle to career and undergraduate reciprocity.

3. The innovative approach would exceed the Sustainable Development Goals on quality education, decent work and economic growth, and reduced inequalities. With a combination of edutainment, corporate, and healthcare involvement that not only addresses education, but mental health. We will create healthy young productive adults who will meet the workforce needs of the United States, and a better life, and pursuit of happiness.

In a two Pittsburgh Public Schools only 25 percent percent of black students are reading at a proficient level. That means, 75 percent of the students can’t read proficiently, at the basic level or are illiterate. 

On national tests last year, only 18 percent of black 4th-graders scored proficient or above in reading; the figure for white 4th-graders was 45 percent. For 8th graders, the percentages were 15 and 42 percent. It’s sobering that more than half of white students fail to meet the proficiency bar. Source: Forbes

The resolution is to thwart reading inequities through edutainment and wean in soft skills to teach youth to navigate chapters of life into adulthood.

 Our plan is to provide education through theatrics, interactive tours, and reverse the national literacy by getting youth interested in STEAM. Our signature draw is the use of bees, owls, eagles, reptiles, porcupines, and the bat named Bruce Wayne. This approach relaxes, as well as excites youth about STEM. This then give one an opportunity to inject healthcare, engineers, law enforcement speakers and our signature dramatic scenes on STEAM, and life skills. This builds self esteem, pride, and inspires youth to aspire to seek career goals at an earlier age.

STEAM D.R.E.A.M. Develop, Reinvent, Envision, Advance, Mentor is an edutainment hybrid pilot that uses a baroque music undertone with Rap Music, Spoken word, and dramatic scenes as a vehicle to first address the emotion over intellect through soft skills. This entails an overview on bullying, violence prevention, school study habits, time management, fiscal responsibility, dining etiquette, drugs and opioids, and interviewing skills all done through dramatic scenes where the student becomes the thespian.

The excitement of dance, flash mobs, and keynote speakers will excite youth to "Look, Listen, and Learn" With a three tier model on (1) soft, and life skills, (2)  literacy, science, math and basic coding, and (3) introduction to manufacturing, robotics, cryptocurrency, cybersecurity and more as an introduction with speakers, hands-on and tours.

The STEAM D.R.E.A.M. initiative will get youth to look at nontraditional careers they may never have been exposed to and create future productive adults through a early primary intervention approach.

The pilot target population are primarily African American middle schoolers.

The youth primarily live in the Hill District. A low poverty area of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where lack of employment opportunities, crime, and a variety of social ills exist. We seek to turn a bed of poison ivy to a bed of roses by adding a primary soft skills, life skills and emotional interactive component then address the educational. We plan to use emotion over intellect to get to the root cause of STEM inequities. This entails parental involvement, and community buy-in by way of parent, and youth forums and award ceremonies.

Cultural relevancy is imperative to inspire youth, as well as mirror emulating at times. There is a shortage of African Americans in varied fields. This is where our friends, and colleagues from varied races, and professions assist and take youth on tours of facilities, come to schools, hands-on experiments and our signature on stage plays called dramatic scenes and our animals, and robotic displays, and University, Colleges, and more interact with youth and our award ceremonies.

With a combination of pre, and post questionnaires, and video testimonials we can see the progression stages. 

We align our program with school STEAM guidelines and the Sustainable Development Goals to reduce inequalities and spark economic growth.

The national shortage of African American STEM professionals comes from a multi-faceted dilemma. African American STEM professionals currently leave their career interest to pursue other less paying careers. We implant early inquisitive strategies to get youth interested in STEAM at an early age and infuse soft skills. The program addresses the social, educational factors and prepares youth to look at new career paths and navigate urban life in marginalized communities to keep their eyes on the prize of education.

Understanding the role of culture in development is important. My first jobs exposed me to people who saw the world differently than I. The more I learned about why they held their beliefs, the more I understood. Today, I ask my [teacher education] students to think about their own cultures and life experiences as the first step in understanding and relating to the children and families they will encounter in the field.
—Barbara T. Bowman

We will be conducting a pilot program at University Preparatory School of Milliones 6th thru 8th grade students which is a title 1 school that is primarily African American. The school is located in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania community called the Hill District. There is currently no one using edutainment as a tool to inspire youth. 

Using Edutainment, and corporate, healthcare institutions as a vehicle to transforms life. The edutainment, tors, and mirror emulating and tracking success is the key to traditional versus nontraditional.

We approximately 65 youth due to COVID-19. The numbers will change due to school reopening and virtual learning becoming a hybrid model.

Pre, and Post Questionnaires and video timeline and parent pre and post questionnarre and video of parents and educators.