2012-2013 Program Year Report
The Milwaukee County office of the University of Wisconsin Extension (MC-UWEX) offers an array of 4-H community programs throughout the County. One that is offered is 4-H sySTEMatics, which enriches middle school youth in the pursuit of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. It is a two year skill progressive certificate program. This program is offered at the students’ schools and couples STEM competencies with pre-college orientation.
The program works with seventh and eighth grade, primarily lower income students in the city of Milwaukee, as a school day or after school enrichment. The university based curriculum that is provided to the schools is hands-on and gets the youth noticeably excited about learning. The STEM college students and professionals that visit the schools and teach lessons act as role models with whom the youth can connect. In March, the youth attend a college day at UW-Waukesha where they participate in hands-on classes and earn a Continuing Education Unit (CEU). There is an end of the year Science Fair and Recognition Ceremony at which the youth receive either a Level I or Level II 4-H STEM Certificate.
Many of the youth involved in 4-H sySTEMatics will be first generation college bound. This program provides higher education resources, including campus visits, college application practice, financial planning, and career exploration.
In the 2012-2013 school year, five schools on the south side of Milwaukee participated, 120 youth were active in some aspect of the program and 65 youth completed the program. Students completed STEM lessons at their school throughout the school year. On March 16th, 55 youth attended the annual UW-Waukesha STEM Day and took science and engineering classes in the labs. The workshops included: Biology, Drafting/Computer Design, Environmental Science, Archaeology, and Mechanical Science: LEGO(R) Robotics Course. A statement from a sySTEMatics youth, “I liked that we did a lot of fun things but at the same time we were learning.”
UW-Waukesha Continuing Education in partnership with MC-UWEX invited twenty-six 4-H sySTEMatics students to attend the UW-Waukesha Summer College Experience that was held at UW-Richland for one week in July. Each youth was selected after an essay review process and awarded full or partial scholarships. Youth took Chemistry, Ecology, GIS/GPS, and Forensics classes, and took a trip to UW-Platteville for a campus tour earning each student three CEUs. They stayed in the UW-Richland campus dorms, ate in the cafeteria, and had class in the science labs to get a feel for college life. Fifteen parents attended the last weekend and toured the campus, participated in activities, and cheered on their youth at the final ceremony. This experience helps youth get excited about STEM and gives them an advantage over other youth their age.
2012-2013 Schools Zip Code % of free or reduced lunch
La Causa Charter 53204 96%
St. Anthony 53204 96%
St. Martini Lutheran 53204 99.6%
Fernwood Montessori 53207 22.3%
Trowbridge 53207 75%
St. Rafael the Archangel 53215 97%
2012-2013 Demographics
· 46% Hispanic, 39% Caucasian/White, 18% Mixed Races, 9% African American, 3% American Indian
· 42% 7th grade, 47% 8th grade
· 59% female, 37% male.
· 70% of the parents graduated from High School.
· 37% of the parents attended a 2 or 4 year College
2012-2013 Evaluation Data
· 5% of the youth reported participation in engineering courses in school or after school prior to joining 4-H sySTEMatics.
· 57% of the youth reported an increase in their desire to participate in further college preparation programs.
· 49% of the youth reported an increase in their parents support and encouragement for them to attend college upon their high school graduation.
· 39% of youth reported an increase in desire to participate in future STEM programs beyond classes in school.
Completion Data 2010-2013
· Students that received a Level 1 Certificate- 148
· Students that received a Level 2 Certificate- 45
· Students that participated in the Science Fair- 62
· Students that attend UWW STEM Day- 114
· Students that attended Summer College Experience- 55
The program was first piloted in 2010-2011 on the south side of the city of Milwaukee in the zip code areas 53204, 53207, 53215 with two participating schools and 20 youth members and has grown each year. Fall 2013, the program received funding from the County to expand further to the north side targeting three Milwaukee Public Schools, expanding the anticipated number of youth throughout Milwaukee to a total of 120. The schools that are participating in the program are public, private, and charter.
2013-2014 Schools Zip Code % of free or reduced lunch
La Causa Charter 53204 96%
St. Anthony Middle School 53204 96%
St. Martini Lutheran 53204 99.6%
Keefe Avenue School 53206 98%
Fernwood Montessori 53207 22.3%
Trowbridge 53207 75%
“I Have a Dream” at Clarke Street School 53210 100%
Windlake Academy 53215 100%
--Prepared by Eva Terry the 4-H sySTEMatics Coordinator—
For more information, please contact Eva Terry, the 4-H sySTEMatics Coordinator, at 414-256-467 or or visit our website milwaukee.uwex.edu.
UW-Waukesha STEM Day The Science Fair
UW-Waukesha Summer College Experience at UW-Richland