The Office of Precollege Programs (PCP) and the SMILE Program enable OSU's faculty to broaden the educational impact of research projects while co-creating STEM curricula for K-12 audiences and professional development opportunities for educators across the state of Oregon (and beyond). Broader impacts of research and community engagement are at the core of what we do. Precollege Programs and the SMILE Program have a long history of reciprocal engagement with K-12 communities across Oregon, working to bridge research to public audiences and broadening participation in STEM. 

Opportunities for researchers: Generating products to be used in after school programs, classrooms, summer camps and more, serving as mentors for high school students, with emphasis on audiences typically underserved in the STEM fields.  

Before connecting with the contacts below, please request a Broader Impacts consultation with Precollege Programs staff to discuss your research and interests, and to connect you with Precollege Programs and external community partners who might be the perfect match for meeting your goals.  Learn more about OSU Precollege Programs support for Broader Impacts efforts. 

Contact: Submit a request form for Chats for Broader Impacts virtual office hours

  • SMILE: The goal of The SMILE Program is to increase the number of underrepresented youth who graduate from high school and pursue STEM college degrees and careers through teacher professional development, design of teaching materials, college connection events, college student involvement, program evaluation, and club support.
    Website: Science & Math Investigative Learning Experiences
    Contact: Jay Well, Associate Director
    Example: Earth Layers Lesson Plan
  • STEM Academy: STEM Academy offers week-long summer camps and select classes throughout the year in a wide variety of subjects for students in grades K through 12. Camps and classes are taught by university faculty, graduate students and local professionals with support from the director to ensure that each activity is engaging, interesting and appropriate for the target audience.  
    Website:     STEM Academy
    Contact: Cathy Law, Director
    CEOAS Example: CAGS Carbon Footprint Lesson Plan 
  • SESEY: The primary focus of the SESEY program is the exposure and recruitment of traditionally underrepresented students (high school girls and ethnic minorities) who have completed their freshman, sophomore or junior years in high school, to careers in science and engineering through a one-week residential summer camp where they are paired with faculty and student mentors in engineering for a mini-research project.
    Website: SESEY (Summer Experience in Science and Engineering for Youth)
    Contact: Skip Rochefort, Founder and Director 

Precollege Programs also offer Campus Fieldtrips (Emily Nicholson), Discovering the Scientist Within (Emily Nicholson), and Beaver Hangouts (Dominique Brooks), which researchers are encouraged to participate in.  These are good opportunities for speaking events with younger audiences, rather than opportunities to develop and deliver more in-depth programs.

Polar STEAM, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math, integrates and enhances two long-standing National Science Foundation (NSF) programs: the Polar Educators program and the Antarctic Artists and Writers program and facilitates virtual and deployment collaborations with scientists conducting research in the polar regions. 

Opportunities for researchers: Working in collaboration with educators, artists, and writers, researchers will help increase the public’s understanding and appreciation of human and scientific endeavors in polar regions.  Polar STEAM works with researchers in the field and those conducting polar research remotely. 
Website: Polar STEAM
Contact: Michelle Pratt, Program Manager

Sea Grant’s Education program is dedicated to increasing marine science literacy across the full spectrum of education, both in the classroom and in daily life, for people of all ages and backgrounds. As part of that effort, Oregon Sea Grant provides formal classes and labs for students of all ages, professional development support for science teachers, and a broad range of formal and informal learning opportunities.  

Oregon Sea Grant also runs the Oregon Coast STEM Hub, which engages learners with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Career Technical Education (CTE) by leveraging local and regional resources and collaborating with diverse partners. (Keep reading for more information on STEM Hubs throughout Oregon)

The Oregon Sea Grant-operated Hatfield Marine Science Visitor Center is the public education wing of the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. Over 150,000 people pass through the doors of the Visitor Center annually to see the exhibits, join in hands-on activities and learn about marine animals and issues facing the coast.  

Opportunities for researchers: Work with HMSC staff to create a feature exhibit, host presentations, workshops, hands-on activities in wet lab or field, judge competitions, or develop curriculum for K-12 classrooms.
Websites: Outreach at Oregon Sea Grant, Oregon Coast STEM Hub, Hatfield Marine Visitor Center
Contact: Tracy Crews, Coordinator for Marine Education Program
CEOAS Example: Regional Class Research Vessel Outreach

Inspiring Girls Expeditions empowers girl-identifying youth to lead and succeed through science, art, and wilderness exploration. Led by CEOAS Professor Erin Pettit, this organization is always open to partnering with scientists to create new expeditions following an established format and focusing on your research and field sites.  

Opportunities for researchers: Provide funding and guidance for development of a new expedition focusing on your subject area and field location
Website: Inspiring Girls Expeditions
Contact:  Erin Pettit, Inspiring Girls Expeditions Director; Ryan Brown, Inspiring Girls Expeditions Program Coordinator
CEOAS Example: Girls on Ice Cascades

The Office of Undergraduate Research, Scholarship & the Arts (Office of URSA) supports undergraduate student engagement in faculty-mentored research and scholarly work across all disciplines and campuses at OSU. The office provides a wide range of resources and programs to ensure that students who engage in research find meaning and growth in these experiences, enhancing their readiness to succeed at OSU and beyond. Concurrently, URSA encourages high-quality, effective mentoring by providing professional development opportunities, resources and awards to graduate students, post-doctoral researchers and faculty who mentor undergraduates in research.

Opportunities for Researchers: URSA has established programs and opportunities for researchers to tie in with when designing outreach to undergraduate audiences. 
Website: Office of Undergraduate Education
Contact: Sophie Pierszalowski, Associate Director of Undergraduate Research

Making high-quality education affordable and accessible for students is a critical priority at Oregon State University. The OERU provides a variety of services for faculty who are interested in adopting, adapting or authoring open educational resources.

Opportunities for researchers: Make textbooks and other class materials available to students for free or reduced prices
Website: Open Educational Resources
Contact: Stephanie Buck, Director Open Educational Resources
CEOAS Example: Introduction to Climate Science, by Andreas Schmittner

The Student Experiences & Engagement organization provides a broad range of opportunities including cultural programming, community service activities, leadership and student media opportunities. Faculty and staff are invited to partner with SEE to develop or enhance experiential and community-based learning opportunities for students. Community Engagement & Leadership (CEL) is one department within SEE that oversees service-learning, civic engagement, and other community engaged learning initiatives.  SEE is part of the Division of Student Affairs.

Opportunities for Researchers: Develop community-based (service) learning components for classes or as part of a research project. Learn about and get connected to Corvallis area nonprofit and government agencies for possible service-learning, community-engaged research, or other project collaborations.  
Website: Student Experiences & Engagement and Community Engagement & Leadership
Contact: Emily Bowling, Director of Community Engagement and Leadership

Oregon’s 13 STEM Hubs build connections in a geographic region so that learners can connect to STEM experiences early and often, igniting students’ passions and interest in these fields. STEM Hubs play an important role in Oregon by: identifying needs and assets in communities; bringing together families, K-12 educators, career technical education partners, higher education, community-based organizations and industry to promote in-school and out-of-school STEM experiences; strategizing to fill STEM learning gaps; and working creatively in their region to build shared social and economic prosperity through STEM access, interest and attainment of skills, especially for students furthest from opportunity.  

Opportunities for researchers: Developing curriculum for K-12 classrooms and connecting with broader community outreach efforts throughout Oregon
Website & Contacts: Regional STEM Hubs in Oregon

Saturday Academy provides wide access to hands-on learning for diverse students in grades 2-12 in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM). Since 1983, as one of Oregon’s leading education nonprofits, its community experts have sparked curiosity and love of learning in young people.

Opportunities for researchers: Sign up as an instructor once or design and lead a longer course, or become a mentor for a motivated high school student for an eight-week, full-time summer internship. 
Website: Saturday Academy: Educational Programs, Classes, and Summer Camps
Contact: info@saturdayacademy.org; 503-200-5858

Data Nuggets are an easy way to increase your broader impacts, practice science communication skills, and create a long-term educational resource. We are constantly working to share these resources with K-12  and undergraduate audiences to improve the understanding of science in society. To date, Data Nuggets have been shared at over 20 professional conferences and have reached thousands of teachers and students.

Opportunities for researchers: Work with a high school teacher to create useable data sets and activities for classroom use from your research.
Website: Data Nuggets
Contacts:  Liz (eschultheis@gmail.com) or Melissa (kjelvikm@gmail.com)

The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is an international science and education program that provides students and the public worldwide with the opportunity to participate in data collection and the scientific process, and contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the Earth system and global environment.  

Opportunities for researchers: Work with GLOBE to develop geoscience focused education initiatives.
Website: Overview
Contact: Contact GLOBE
CEOAS Example: Trees (Peder Nelson)