(lighthearted music) (camera beeping) (air whooshes) (pensive music) (pensive music continues) - "Eye on Education."

I'm Fred Martino.

Thanks for joining us.

For decades, educators in the United States have been working to increase the number of college graduates in the STEM fields, science, technology, engineering, and math.

And today, we are going to hear about a major effort in our region, the STEM Education Research Center at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

My guest is the center's director.

Harvey Henson has been sharing his expertise in earthquake seismology for more than 25 years, and he's worked with other STEM researchers to obtain over $42 million in grants and contracts.

Harvey, thank you so much for being with us today.

- Thank you.

It's my pleasure to be here, Fred.

- It is great to have you with us.

Many of our viewers who are watching this show, I would venture to say this may be that the first time that there're hearing that there is a STEM Education Research Center right here in Southern Illinois.

Tell me about this center and about your mission, what you do.

- Thank you.

Yeah, I've been working so hard with my colleagues, it's time to start promoting ourselves a little more, (Fred laughing) so thank you for having us here today.

So our center's mission is very simple.

It's to advance STEM literacy.

And, you know, that's a large collaborative effort.

We can't do that on our own.

So I think of the center as a sandbox where other specialists, experts, faculty, students, staff, the community can come and build something that will help us accomplish that mission.

- Yeah, and give us a sense of the mission and what it is that you do and why we have a center here at SIU Carbondale.

- Well, as you mentioned, STEM literacy, STEM capacity needs to increase, especially in the US.

We're behind, and so we've got quite an effort ahead of us to reverse that.

But industry, as we know it, is increasingly technologically advanced with artificial intelligence and machine learning, data science.

We're using that as consumers every day.

Most of our students are very familiar with the technology as a consumer, but increasingly fewer are able to move into those spaces professionally in critical careers to develop and advance the technology.

So we're falling a little behind in that.

So part of our mission at the STEM Center is to collaborate with anyone who's concerned about that.

And, as I said, advanced STEM literacy starts at the very, very early years.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Yeah, before you get to college, you have to have an interest in junior high school or middle school, and then high school, and get prepared to get into a college study, particularly in these fields.

You mentioned artificial intelligence as one thing.

We hear a lot about AI.

What are some of the other specific areas of STEM education and also STEM research?

- Sure, so mathematics is a big thing, right?

I was just at an award ceremony of some of the local schools where we do math competitions.

Maybe we can talk about that in a few minutes.

But celebrating the kids who've decided they wanted to compete with the rest of the world in one of our competitions that we host at SIU, and they were winning gold medals and silver medals and bronze medals, competing with the best in the world.

We think that math is so important because, you know, as everyone says, if a student could do math, they can do anything.

But our competition and the collaboration we have for the math research and outreach is showing that kids can do math.

So, we think we're onto something.

And that's part of STEM, of course, but it's a very important part of changing the technology dynamics, this capacity that we need to increase in the US.

- And competition is a good way to do it.

That interests, (Harvey chuckles) I'm sure, students.

They get excited about competing against other students to win a competition.

- They do.

You know, a lot of competitions are very expensive, and it's the usual suspects.

They're very talented kids that are already interested in some STEM field, like math.

But our competition is inverted.

It's free.

The STEM Center sponsors that with SIU and generous donors.

So thank you, donors.

But we make it free for the entire school building to compete.

So it's an all play.

- Okay.

- And what we're seeing is that second grade, third grade, all the way to 12th grade, the students are engaged in this competition, 'cause it's not like the other competitions that we're used to, so it's a little different.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- We enjoy doing it in this very studio with "Scholastic Hi-Q," our quiz show, where we have students come in from all over the region from high schools who compete on various topics on-air in a quiz show.

Besides math, besides AI, are there areas that you wanna highlight?

- Sure.

We have collaborations with faculty and staff from across the campus.

- Okay.

- So we could talk about those all day long.

We're collaborating with every unit at SIU Carbondale, well, let me put it this way, except for the School of Law and the College of Business.

So far we don't have faculty we're collaborating in those areas, but in every other unit, every other space across campus, we've got some collaboration going on in the STEM Center.

- That is really exciting!

And, you know, it makes me think of something, even in my area of undergraduate study in communications, that I often tell students today, "Learn as much as you can about technology because you're going to be doing work online.

You're going to be, if you can learn HTML, if you can learn about every aspect of technology that media touches, you will be ahead of the game."

Because we use technology in just about everything we do.

- We do.

And increasingly it's helping us be more efficient and proficient, but it's also helping us understand the world around us, which is... You know, I should define STEM literacy, that's what we mean by STEM literacy- - [Fred] Right.

- Contributing to a better world because we know how to make sense of what's going on around us, whether it's something phenomenal like the eclipse event we just celebrated, right?

That's an all play.

So the world is an all play, it's integrated, it takes diversity, it takes inclusive participation.

So, STEM literacy is this idea that students who are the future can make the world a better place because they understand how to figure things out, right, making sense of the world around them.

- Yeah.

- So the technology allows us to do that.

We know already.

- Yeah.

- Our students in our classrooms are using those devices and the AI, we know that.

- Yeah.

- And they're, (chuckles) they're doing it very well, so.

- Yeah, and it's just, it's another tool, we just have to be careful about how we use it, like any other tool.

I know that the center has been celebrating some major accomplishments.

Tell us about that.

- Yes, we've been working very hard.

We have brought in collaboratively in the last six and a half years a little over $40 million.

And we just got $7.5 million awarded to us this week, so.

- Wow, wow!

- We're doing some extraordinary things.

And it's, you know, I will brag on my colleagues.

It's about building a team, right?

It's always a team that celebrates the wins.

Big ones, in this case, because we've done very well in bringing external funds to the campus.

- And we should say we're taping this in May of 2024 for someone who watches it at a later date, that's a big announcement to get a grant of over $7 million.

And you said over the last number of years, over $40 million.

- Right.

- It's a lot, and folks don't realize when you're talking about research, this is a big part of the job in terms of working at a university.

You're not just teaching, you're not just an administrator, but you're raising grant funds.

It's something that we also do here at WSIU.

- It's a big part of what we are, right?

We're good at service, we're good at teaching, but we're also really good at research at Carbondale.

- Yeah, absolutely.

You also have a lot of partnerships with industry.

Let's get into more detail on some of those.

- Yeah, so as we mentioned, the last six and a half years, we've been really busy at bringing in grants and contracts and writing a lot of proposals, collaborating with others.

I've been mentoring faculty to do that.

So that basket's filling up really well.

But I think we need other streams of revenue.

Grants and contracts come and go, and what I don't want is my amazing staff and my colleagues to have to suffer in between grants and contracts.

That's no man's land and we don't wanna be there.

So partnering with industry accomplishes that second revenue stream, right?

So that's very important.

And above that, partnering with industry allows us to do what we wanna do, accomplish our mission faster, and we can go further.

We're doing really well regionally in Southern Illinois partnering with schools.

But we were doing that before we had a STEM Center.

That's part of how the STEM Center got started.

Faculty collaborating on teacher partnerships and student achievement.

But now we're looking at the entire state and coast to coast with some of our programs, and even international, some of our collaborations.

- Okay, and this probably also gives good opportunities for students who might have internships or student employment sometimes?

- Absolutely.

- Yeah.

- We, gee, there, I don't even, Fred, I don't even know how many students we have right now in our STEM Center, but... We have graduate students and undergraduate students at all levels.

One of the international collaborations I talked about, the Math Olympiad, that partnership is with Singapore and an alumni named Henry Ong.

And Henry is providing scholarships, and we'll have four new international students come to campus, and they'll work in the STEM Center to get their research acumen, okay?

And then they'll be STEM majors.

So then they'll start doing research in their respective areas once they get their, you know, their feet under them.

So we're not directly involved in recruitment, but if we do service right, that's really recruitment.

- Yeah.

- So these industry partners are helping us do those kinds of things.

Provide the scholarships, provide the training, the internships, and support when the students are here going to class.

- Okay.

Is there anything else that you'd like to highlight about the center's most important research?

- Yeah, I think what we're doing is we're looking at science teaching in the state of Illinois.

- Mm.

- We have a partnership with the State Board of Education to look at professional learning for our teacher partners.

So it's a pilot study right now.

We'll start our second year this summer.

But we're providing with National Science Teaching Association training workshops, synchronous/asynchronous webinars for those teachers to come and dig in on science standards and how to create better curriculum and teaching in their classrooms.

So, we are the unit that researches that.

We assess it and evaluate that and then use that information in a feedback logic model to design better professional learning for the next cycle.

So we're helping the state and helping the National Science Teaching Association do that.

- Is there anything that stands out so far that you're learning from that about how we train better science teachers?

- Well, we've found that assessment is key.

- Mm.

- You know, we always think that large summative assessments, and, you know, every state has to test student learning in science and math and so forth, and I guess there's a stigmatism that that is a negative thing, that it's something that was used or weaponized in some cases to, you know, against the teaching or the teachers.

But what we've been able to do with one of our projects with the State Board of Education is turn that stigmatism around.

And teachers now have been part of designing the assessment questions- - Okay.

- And part of evaluating the student responses.

And what the teachers are telling us now in our research, and we've published on this, that it's made them better teachers, that the students are learning more effectively.

- Yeah.

- So now it's not a summative gotcha, but it's a formative equipping of the teaching and the learning in the classroom.

- That's great.

- So that's the kinda research that we're a part of.

- Okay.

- Yep.

- You mentioned earlier that you've worked with just about every department at SIU Carbondale to integrate them into the work that you're doing.

Give us a sense of how you do that, how you incorporate all these different disciplines into the STEM work.

- That's a great question.

So, if I had the chance about 10 years ago to give the center a different name, it would probably be STEAM, right?

You know, we put the A in the middle of STEM.

You know, the A stands for arts and architecture and anthropology or whatever A you wanna throw in there.

But I really think the A stands for all of us.

You know, the A is an all play, like the eclipse event.

Everyone could enjoy and try to make sense of that phenomenal event, right?

It was an all play.

So really, I would say STEAM is everything you want it to be, but it is all of us.

And so the STEAM Center, maybe that'll be the new name, (Fred laughs) I don't know.

(chuckles) - Well, STEAM, as you know, is an acronym that's being used now, so, sure.

- Sure.

- Yeah.

- Yeah, but I like to think that the A is all of us, right?

- Okay.

- That STEM literacy piece of making sense of the world around us.

- And so I guess it's really just reaching out and getting collaboration, getting input from all of those different professionals in every department- - Sure.

- About how, how do we incorporate this work into what you do?

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- There's room for all of us across campus.

So, obviously the arts and the media, performance arts, we've worked with several of the faculty colleagues, you know, and some of your staff was instrumental in pulling off the eclipse shows that we put on last month.

- It was quite a thrill to have several hours of programming nonstop, highlighting the eclipse and what happened.

- We should probably say thank you to NASA and to the National Science Foundation providing those funds to, you know, make these collaborations possible.

- Right.

- Yeah.

- Let's, when you, you know, the A being all of us gets to another point, and I wanna talk about how the center is engaging underrepresented groups in STEM fields.

- Sure.

Another great question.

We, well, I think it starts with the staff and the faculty involved in this center.

I'm very proud of our team.

They work so hard and they've accomplished so much.

And I know they're just getting started, they're so talented.

But we're very diverse, more than half of our staff are women, and they have science degrees, STEM degrees.

We have representation from other groups as well, and I think that that makes us good role models.

- Yeah.

- It makes us more productive.

As I said, STEAM/STEM is really integrated, you know, the world around us takes a diverse perspective, and by default, we're inclusive.

So we start there, right?

And we target Southern Illinois, as you know, has struggles with low socioeconomic issues.

Most of our schools are free, reduced lunches.

So we feel good about the support and the service that we provide the region.

But beyond that, we work with special groups, colleagues like Dr. Justin McDaniel, who's very involved with research and support and service for veterans, another underrepresented group.

So we're involved and supportive of the collaboration that Justin is involved with.

But there are many other faculty I can name that, you know, that we're collaborating with to make a difference in all peoples, but especially those that deserve it and need it the most, right?

- That's great.

Mentorship programs are so important in education.

Tell me about your work in that area.

- So with the large grants and contracts we've been able to get, they're truly collaborative.

It takes a team, right?

You can't do this on your own.

You will burn out.

(chuckles) So we've been finding faculty, especially junior faculty who are, you know, struggling to get their first grant, but are very talented.

Obviously they're here at SIU.

So we've been building teams strategically with faculty who have the skills and the knowledge and the ability to do the work.

But most importantly, you know, we're bringing those junior faculty into a place where they can get a $5 million grant- - Hmm!

- Right off the start.

That's a jumpstart for their career.

And so I really like mentoring those faculty and then turning them loose, you know, to, to be PI on their own grant.

And I mentioned Dr. Justin McDaniel.

He, three years ago, landed his first National Science Foundation grant.

And so that was a nice accomplishment.

I'm very proud of him.

- Quite a thrill, that's for sure.

Tell me a little more about your work in working with local schools and educators and all of the work that you're doing in that area as well, because as you know, we also have a need to have more students, not just in the STEM fields but attend post-secondary education, period.

We have to, you know, give every student who's interested the knowledge and opportunity to do that, and we're trying to do more in that area.

- That's right, the pipeline- - Yes, right.

- Is so important.

And the best way, you know, students are a moving target, right?

So, creating relationships with local educators, administrators, and teachers, those partnerships is strategic, because we can serve all the students as they move through the pipeline.

But we can help those teachers, as I mentioned before, you know, become more confident and more prepared to teach those STEM subjects especially.

So, STEM Center is not the only group of people doing that on campus, like I said, a lot of people are doing this, but it's strategically important to prepare those students in the classrooms with those teachers so they're ready to move to the next level.

- Yeah.

- You know, and math, I think, is one of the great opportunities we have, as I mentioned earlier.

- Yeah.

- So we've really been pushing the math partnerships and collaborations.

- And it's an area where a lot of students need assistance.

I mean, I know (chuckles) when I was in high school, that was one that I struggled with myself.

So, my dad was a science teacher in public school, and so I had some help at home.

But I was nowhere near his ability in math.

So I did not enter a field (laughs) (Fred chuckles) where math was quite as important, but I know so a lot of students were like me and need that help.

Speaking of math, and funding is one part of math when we think about math, in addition to funding, what other challenges is the center facing, and how does funding come into it too?

- That's a great question.

So I mentioned the multiple streams of revenue, right?

So, industry and corporate sponsorships and partnerships can create a new form of support and assistance, but donations and endowments, that's where we wanna be.

So there's the future and I'll be spending a lot of time working on that.

But...

So that's a good problem to have.

But a challenge would be for a space, we're growing very fast.

- Mm!

- Our FTE is up over 25, you know, counting all the students that are working part-time.

- That's full-time employees.

- Full-time equivalent, yeah.

- Equivalent, right.

- So we have about 12 staff- - Okay.

- Excluding me.

And then we have all these students- - Okay.

- Right, that are 50% here, 25% there, and so we have a small army of capable people.

But that's a challenge itself directing that.

Also being associate professor now in two different places and teaching, I have five doctoral students.

Those are challenges for me.

But I love my job.

- Mm!

- So.

(chuckles) Another challenge is space for all those people to growth.

And so we're working on that, you know?

The administration's been very helpful in helping us identify space we can grow into.

But I could go on.

- That's good.

- There's always things to work on, right?

- If someone is watching and they wanna collaborate with the center, how would they go about doing that?

- Sure, they can reach out to me, henson@siu.edu, and I'll be glad to chat with them.

And, you know, we'll get something off the ground and we'll get a team built and we'll get it funded.

- Yeah.

In our final minutes together here, give me a sense, as I mentioned at the beginning of the show, someone's just joining us later in, they didn't hear this, your particular specialty is earthquake seismology, how did you become interested in science and then this field in particular?

A very interesting field, probably to a lot of people.

- Great question.

So, I was one of nine kids on a farm, first-generation college- - Nine!

- Yeah.

- Big family.

- Right in the middle.

Yeah, I was that kid.

No one on either side of my family had ever thought about going to college.

So I was the kid that picked up rocks and tried to figure out what they meant, you know?

And had the chance to get a geology degree eventually at Ball State in Muncie and come to Carbondale for grad school.

And I came here to do geophysics, more specifically earthquake seismology.

And, you know, that's an interesting story if we have a minute, but I- - Just one minute.

- One minute.

I was that 5-year-old kid that experienced an earthquake for the first time but had no idea what it was.

I just thought the mirror was shaking because Grandma's house was old and there was a train going by.

You go outside, there's no train.

(Fred chuckles) And as a 5-year-old, you just kind of space it and forget about it, right?

It wasn't until 1986 when I was a grad student in a seismology class that I saw a list of important earthquakes.

November 1968, a 5.4 rocks the Midwest.

And I remember, and I went back through time and I was in front of that mirror again, watching it shake, and then I knew- - It was you.

- That was me, (Fred chuckles) and that's how I got started in earthquake.

So it was an epiphany, right?

I knew I needed to stay in Carbondale and continue studying STEM.

(Harvey chuckles) - What a great story.

Well, Harvey, thank you.

We're out of time.

Thank you so much for being with us today.

- You're welcome.

Thank you.

- Great to have you here.

Harvey Henson is the director of the STEM Education Research Center at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Thank you for being with us at home.

For all of us at WSIU, I'm Fred Martino, have a great week.

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