STEM and Vocational Center

STEM and Vocational Centre is a collaboration between University of Juba and STEM-power, founded by Mark Gelfand. It was built in 2015 and launched in 2017. The main goal is to compliment the theoretical teaching in the sciences with practical lab activity. This is to be done developing various programs which are student-centered and hands-on in the design. This hopefully would enable the student to develop interest and grasp basic skills in the sciences. In organizing the programs, consideration is taken into the various age groups, the school levels/classes, the formal curriculum, and the actual theoretical knowledge of the students.

The central purpose of the University of Juba STEM Centre is the development of various programs which are student-centered, intensive, challenging, and hands-on in the design which enables the child to develop interest and grasp basic skills in the field of applied science and engineering. The interest thus kindled in the child at early age is expected to spur them to pursue their study in higher education to become a professional in the fields of science.

Goals

• Training and mentoring
• Bridge to university study
• Form of partnership with key institutions to enable the Centre to form an Advisory Board in the interim which will provide it with policy-making and a monitoring body which can give needed support in all spheres of activities of the Centre.
• Develop of intensive programs which are responsive to the needs of individual students, teachers, parents and other special programs.
• Foster competition in the form of a Science Fair which involves every school at the initial stage and culminates at the city level or even country level at the final stage.
• Identify and involve volunteers who will act as the back bone of the Centre to provide competent technical demonstration and instructional sessions.
• To reach out and link up with institutions of similar undertaking and foster program exchanges and experience sharing at all levels.
• As all this is going on, the Lab Technicians will be working on activities and experiments for the next year. Preparing lab manuals, etc.