Mission: Expose underrepresented students to STEM, empower parents as educational partners, collaborate with educators to foster creative learning environments and increase minority presence in the critical fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics
The Challenge.
Middle school is a challenging period for students; they are in the midst of social, emotional and physical transitions while facing more rigorous academic demands. This is also a season rife with opportunity, however during middle school many students veer away from science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subject areas. It’s important to provide sufficient exposure before students dismiss these fields. Prior to 2001, African American students showed the highest level of interest in STEM, excluding Asian students. Since then, African American students interest in STEM has plunged and is now lower than any other ethnicity.
The Opportunity.
At a 20.6% growth rate, Science & Engineering occupations are projected to grow at more than double the rate of the overall U.S. labor force through 2018. In four years, 71% of STEM jobs will be in Computing. New York is expected to have the 3rd largest job market with an estimated 477,000 STEM related jobs. It is our responsibility to ensure that students are equipped to maximize their potential and positioned to succeed in the new market.
The i6 Response.
ionic6 will expose urban minority middle school students to technology in a fun and engaging environment, provide computer essentials training for parents and consulting services to teachers for technology integration in the curriculum. Middle school students will develop coding skills and learn more about STEM related career opportunities while parents will develop skills to encourage their child’s STEM interest and development. i6 believes a strong support network is essential to the students success. We will help to strengthen the partnership between parents, teachers, the school and community.
“Leadership tomorrow depends on how we educate our students today— especially in science, technology, engineering and math.”
President Barack Obama
i6 will provide a fun and engaging environment to introduce students to writing code. They will learn using Scratch, a programming language developed at MIT. Our students current and future success is dependent on a firm foundation. To ensure that our students are competitive for the global market, equipped for success and prepared to become effective leaders our students need timely exposure to STEM related fields to broaden their considerations and prepare them for success in the future.
“At the end of the day, the most overwhelming key to a child’s success is the positive involvement of parents.”
Jane D. Hull, Former Governor of Arizona
Parental engagement in an essential ingredient to a students success. In today’s world it is imperative that parents are computer literate in order to support their child technically, manage their children’s online activity and fully serve as an educational advocate for their child.
i6 provides a track exclusively for parents to develop their technology skills to support their child. The session runs concurrently with the student’s training.
“Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is most important.”
Bill Gates, Philanthropist
i6 provides consulting services to teachers for integrating technology into the curriculum or enhancing an existing technology curriculum upon request. The teacher serves as an educator for the student and a key resource for the parent. The partnership between parent and teacher keeps the channels of communication open and contributes to a strong and mutually aligned support network for the student.
“Every successful individual knows that his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together.”
Paul Ryan, US Congressman
Ensuring our students success is one of the best investments a community can make and provides significant gains and immeasurable returns. As our students progress they will be positioned to reinvest to communities that contributed to their development and help others succeed
Discover
Expose to new concepts.
Use recently gained insight
to think creatively and
solve problems
Collaborate
Effectively work with others on a project. Appreciate the value of diverse thoughts and learn to leverage everyone’s contribution for a better result.
Build
Construct the code to formulate the ideas discussed. Practical application of the concepts learned.
Launch
See conceptual turn into reality as their ideas are brought to life. Witness the impact of technology and witness the effects when the code runs successfully.
Our i6 Values
We must have the curiosity to explore new things and the vision to see beyond what’s directly in front of us and see the possibilities. Have the passion to execute the plan and bring the vision to fruition. This road is often the one less travelled and fraught with obstacles, we must have the courage to face adversity along the way and the determination to forge ahead. Through it all, ensure our integrity remains intact and serves as a guiding principle that will help us grow and retain our instilled values.
Our i6 Values
Our Program
Students
Students will learn coding essentials using Scratch , designed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Scratch is a fun and engaging tool to teach students basic programming concepts to capture, engage and demonstrate the power of computing during the course of 8-weeks. Students will have an opportunity to showcase their work.
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Parents
Parents will learn computing essentials including word processing, email management and navigating social media. Parent sessions are run concurrently with student sessions during the 8-weeks. Parents are encouraged to actively engage and help their child prepare for final presentations.
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Teachers / Schools
i6 will provide consulting services for teachers and schools to provide recommendations on strategic integration of technology into the curriculum and innovative methods to encourage active student engagement in STEM related subject areas.
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Founders Message
As a teacher, I recognized there was an opportunity to strengthen the collaboration between students, parents, teachers, school and community. Collectively, a strong partnership provides exponential benefits. Ionic 6 (i6) serves as the sixth partner to help facilitate an ongoing relationship and contribute to ensuring a strong successful future. I believe there’s a trailblazer in each student and they have something amazing to share with the world. We must surround them with a supportive core network to unleash the innovator within. Early in life, I had dreams and aspirations of success. Along the way, I was blessed with people who believed in me, inspired me and helped to unearth my potential. I knew that the world was full of amazing possibilities and I set out to discover my destiny. Through my journey I followed my love of mathematics into the field of finance. Along the way, I discovered a gift for teaching and a passion for sharing knowledge with others. I chose to pursue a professional career in business and volunteered my time to non-profit organizations to teach and tutor students. My love of teaching inspired me to take a sabbatical from climbing the corporate ladder to become a full time educator. My tenure as a public middle school math and technology teacher was an enlightening experience; I learned the importance of a strong partnerships between the student, parent, teacher, school and community. This alliance is essential to students’ success.
i6 is a resource to help strengthen this relationship and help to expand student’s horizons by teaching them how to explore and use technology in creative and new ways. I’m excited for students who participate and the families that allow ionic6 to be a part of this journey with them.
Georgia Forbes
Executive Director and Founder