STEM

ACT Now is dedicated to assisting out-of-school time programs in all areas of the state to develop and expand quality STEM programming that provides opportunities for all youth to develop skills and promote an early interest in STEM.

Only 20% of a student’s waking hours are spent in a formal school setting, leaving out-of-school time to play an impactful role in the lives and futures of youth. Out-of-school time programs offer youth the opportunity to explore STEM concepts in a low-pressure, high-exploration setting that promotes collaboration and innovation.

For assistance or more information regarding STEM resources, contact Kim Turnbull, Afterschool STEM Manager at turnbullk@actnowillinois.org.

STEM Clubs
STEM Events
Partnerships
Resources
Highlights
STEM Newsletter

ACT Now’s STEM Clubs

ACT Now initiates and supports multiple STEM Clubs throughout the state of Illinois in partnership with established afterschool programs to provide quality, hands-on STEM experiences. The target programs will serve students from low-income families, students of color and young women. The clubs will focus on grades 3 to 8 with an emphasis on advancing an engineering mindset and increasing computational thinking capacity. Each club is provided STEM curriculum based on 1 hour of hands-on STEM programming per week, all materials to implement the curriculum, professional development training for club facilitators that covers curriculum content, effective pedagogy, and engaging facilitation techniques. STEM Clubs are given continual support from ACT Now from start to finish.

STEM Clubs youth impact

STEM Clubs Youth Impact

ACT Now’s STEM Events

There are no upcoming STEM events at this time. Check back soon!

STEM Partnerships

ACT Now’s STEM Guiding Team

The STEM Guiding Team facilitates information sharing and resource coordination to identify and meet the needs of the afterschool field for STEM professional development in Illinois. The committee also helps to develop resources and materials related to high-quality STEM programming and collect data on STEM programs in the state.

Thank you to our current committee members:

Stephanie Dietrich, Cancer Center at Illinois
Kenny Riley, Carole Robertson Center for Learning, Chicago
Nick Papineau, Children’s Discovery Museum
Brianne Caplan, Code Your Dreams
Mike Sandidge, DHS
Jenny Flowers, DuPage Children’s Museum
Kimberly Mendoza, Field Museum
Monique Turner, Griffin Museum of Science and Industry
Edie Dobrez, Homewood Science Center
Melissa Siska, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
Cachetta Potts, Project Exploration
Natasha Smith-Walker, Project Exploration
John Loehr, Science Olympiad
Shonali Ditz, SparkShop
Eileen Patton, SparkShop
Jill Edelblute, YMCA of Metro Chicago

Additional STEM Resources and Partners

Million Girls Moonshot

The Million Girls Moonshot seeks to re-imagine who can engineer, who can build, who can make. It will inspire and prepare the next generation of innovators by engaging millions more girls in STEM learning opportunities through afterschool and summer programs over the next 5 years.

Learn More

ACT Now’s STEM Guidebook

Throughout ACT Now’s STEM Guidebook, there are resources on how to fund your program, gain professional development opportunities, build a curriculum with activity recommendations, and ways in which you can advocate for policy change for STEM in afterschool.

As an afterschool provider, you do not have to have a STEM background or have access to an expensive lab. STEM can be learned, experienced, and experimented with alongside the students in your program and through the affordable resources presented in this guidebook. There are many, many resources on STEM afterschool education, so the resources throughout this guidebook are by no means all of the incredible, insightful resources available!

Download the Guide