Mission

The STEM Impressionists program (SIP) was created to ensure that underrepresented students, especially Black and Brown girls, received sustained mentoring so that they can successfully engage in continuously dynamic, participatory activities that developed their STEM, leadership and entrepreneurial skills.

SIP News

The SIP experience is driven by hands-on, student produced STEM activities. Cohort members design project-based curriculum intended to engage the student’s 21st-century career-related STEM and professional skills: computer science, robotics, coding, teamwork, collaboration, presentation, and more!

SIP members are community educators. Their experiences include producing seminars, sponsoring competitions, and hosting hackathons. They also extend to their own learning via seminars, classes, and guest speakers.

Cohort members empower themselves and collaborate with one another, as well as industry changemakers, to make a positive, long-lasting impact within the STEM field and beyond. SIP is a future-oriented organization, preparing cohort members for a lifelong journey of changemaking using their STEM expertise to impact the world.

Purposeful community service is at the heart of SIP’s practice. We believe in William Glasser’s theory “you learn 95% of what you teach others.” By helping others succeed in STEM we create an win-win atmosphere; the students we serve learn skills they can use to start/develop their STEM journey and SIP members use their multifaceted skills to create a useful resume, and express their humanity by “paying it forward” for others.

Cohort members delight in sharing their passion for addressing the issues associated with the equity, inclusion, and the leaky STEM pipeline. If our skills can help you develop your STEM program, please contact us! We would love to be a guest speaker at your next event!

SIP fosters long-term relationships as the solution to the problem of ensuring that more minority talent is being developed and prepared for careers in STEM. We believe that the outreach for girls in STEM needs start in middle school and continue until they receive their Masters degree (MS2MS)!

SIP is a networking organization with a focus. Members will continue to impact the organization well into their respective careers by nurturing the connections built and carrying forward the SIP mission.

Impact

SIP is an intergenerational team (adults + students), focused on addressing the “leaky pipeline” in STEM with win-win solutions. The cornerstone of our program is to generate a plethora of real world experiences that translate into opportunities for SIP members and the participants of our community service activities. Our plan has been effective.

3

Cohorts

12 Mentees for

12 Years

25,000

Views

LiveStream &

Zoom

2,000

In-Person Trainings

Community Service

STEM Trainings

42

Awards

Team & Individual

Nat'l & Local Awards

“Human communities depend upon a diversity of talent, not a singular conception of ability.
And at the heart of the challenge is to reconstitute our sense of ability and intelligence.”

Sir Ken Robinson

Participation | Cohorts

What is it like to participate in Ms. DeHart’s after-school STEM program or be a member of the STEM Impressionists? It depends on who you ask! Each participant has a unique story about their experience; how they met Ms. DeHart, what after activities they participated in, how they decided to become a member of SIP, etc.

Every STEM activity, after-school or participating in SIP is about helping and inspiring students so that they can reach their potential.

After-School STEM Participants

Cohort Members

STEM Experience

It takes a village, working together towards a common purpose to create an atmosphere of success. The individual members of SIP create, as they participate in their self-selected hands-on STEM activities, the line items that appear on their resumes.
The intersectionality of our talents and focused commitment culminates in an intergenerational team supported by external partners that allows us to work together to forge a personalized STEM pathway for each member.

STEM Into Spring

This seminar was inspired by the Hour of Code activity facilitated by Mera Seifu and Yabesra Ewnetu.

Hour of Code

Coding is a 21st century skill. Whether you are a software engineer, or not, coding is everywhere...

GMU FOCUS Camp

A teacher told a mutual friend about an article in George Mason University's Magazine. Mr. DeHart's...

Bright-CS

BRIGHT-CS is a program for girls in middle school. Girls learn how computer science...

HackSIP

HackSIP was a hackathon series created by Mera Seifu and Nardos Demilew. They, along with ...

Read More About our STEM Experiences!

Your Donations Make a Difference

Your generous donations allow us to fund 3 programs:

STEM Scholarships: Title 1 Students

We know how important it is to earn scholarships that allow you to accept unpaid internships or having the funds to travel. Our scholarship is meant to be a bridge for students while that work on the line items that create the resume that leads them to their internship and/or school of choice.

Grants: K-12 STEM Teachers

Mx. DeHart constantly helped students participate in STEM events. She drove her car, reached into her pocket, and many teachers – if they want to help their students, do the same thing. The grant is to help teachers keep their funds AND support their students!

College SIP

Career preparation requires that mentees attend conferences and take classes that support our role as SIP’s non-profit board members. While the K12 program was able to work on a very limited budget, the College program needs significant funding. Not only do we want to continue to develop the students participating in SIP we do not want to lose sight of being able to have the time and financial support needed to pay it forward for others.

Our Way of Shaking the World

We are inspired by some of Gandhi’s quotes:
“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
“In a gentle way, you can shake the world” so “See the good in people and help them.”

Youth Adult/Peer-2-Peer Speaker's Bureau

Bring one of our cohort members into your classroom or after-school program as a guest speaker with/without a hands-on activity! We can help you use the power “see one be one” for your students.

STEM Teacher Guest Speaker/PD Leader

Angela DeHart is an awarding winning FACS and STEM teacher. Not only is she able to share stories of her success that can offer your teachers inspiration and ideas for their own classroom she can support them with practical, implementable, standard supported professional development.

Online STEM Resources

We have two kinds!

  • FREE: Please look at and use the many resources that we have on this website. Tell your friends and/or comeback and use them again yourself. New materials are being added all of the time.
  • PAID: There are lesson plans that have never been released and ones that are being developed for online learning. If you are interested in LinkedIn badge/certificate training and/or having access to a large selection of STEM, coding, FACS, and after-school activity lesson plans, send us an email about becoming a STEM resource member.

How Can We Assist You?

SIP is built on the belief that “Helping others is the way we help ourselves. {Oprah Winfrey}” Please reach out and let’s discuss a way to create a collaborative opportunity that benefits us both!