Noyce Elementary Education Scholarship Program

Juniors and seniors will receive an average scholarship of $15,250 per year, based on the cost of attendance (COA) and the financial need profile of the students. The COA includes $43,070 annual tuition, $15,960 room and board, and $1,200 books and supplies. A sliding scale for the scholarships will be applied based on financial need and other sources of gift aid (on average, SHU students receive $15,231 in grants and scholarships). Based on financial aid data (considering gift aid and estimated family contribution), the Noyce scholarship is anticipated to cover all unmet need. Postbaccalaureate students participate in the Graduate Teacher Internship program, which provides partial tuition credit and thus reduces tuition to $10,275. In the Postbaccalaureate year, the Noyce scholars will receive a scholarship of $10,000 on average (according to a sliding scale based on need, sources of gift aid, and family contributions) to cover all unmet need.

Elementary (SISTEMEC) Program Highlights

The SISTEMEC program will prepare Elementary (with concentration in STEM) teachers by combining a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary STEM with a fifth year in elementary education, allowing students to earn a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT). 

Education & STEM Curriculum

The Interdisciplinary STEM major requires 42 credits, including an Integrating STEM Across the Curriculum seminar. The courses cover multiple STEM disciplines, including biology, computer science, engineering, math, and physics, as well as teaching STEM (example: Biology for Elementary Teachers). Scholars in the SISTEMEC program will take an additional two-credit seminar per semester (eight credits total).

Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL)

In the SISTEMEC program, two students will be hired as Peer Leaders (PLs) and tutors for each cohort. These PLs will be exceptional junior year STEM students with high GPAs, proven track records in STEM courses, and personalities that will facilitate their effectiveness as team leaders in a collaborative learning environment. Selected students will receive substantial training by the Peer Instructors in the principles of PLTL and tutoring in general (learning styles, etc.). Weekly group meetings with the sequence instructor and Professor Maur over the course of the semester will introduce PLs to problem-solving and other active learning exercises specifically designed to address key conceptual difficulties typically encountered in these courses. The project team will encourage the SISTEMEC scholars to apply to be PLs in their junior and senior years.

Service Learning Experience

The SISTEMEC program will include two opportunities for service learning. The first opportunity which is part of the MAST recruitment strategy, will be open to 10 rising sophomore Interdisciplinary STEM majors who express an interest in pursuing elementary education. The experience will be full-time over two weeks in the summer, and participating students will be offered a stipend of $1,000 as well as free housing if their experience is local to SHU. The second opportunity will be mandatory for all MAST scholars in the summer between junior and senior year. It will occur over six weeks, and the scholars will receive a stipend of $3,000 and free housing.

Capstone Research Project

STEM research experiences have been demonstrated to be highly beneficial for undergraduates, as these experiences introduce students to the nature of scientific inquiry, allow them to put classroom knowledge into practice, foster engagement in STEM disciplines, and develop students' identity as scientists or mathematicians. All SISTEMEC scholars will conduct a research project with a STEM or education faculty member for a minimum of three (up to six) credits over at least one semester or during the summer. 

Advising, Mentoring & Induction Support

With the SISTEMEC program, SHU will examine the benefits that result by beginning the mentoring relationship earlier, during junior year, a full three years before students begin their teaching career. Beginning their junior year, scholars will be assigned one faculty advisor from their STEM department and a second advisor from the education faculty. These faculty will be in communication and will collaborate working toward each student's success as a SISTEMEC scholar. In addition, SHU will implement a new Master Mentor Program, in which SISTEMEC scholars will be paired in their junior year with an elementary STEM teacher in a high-need school district. 

Professional Identity Development

To help teachers gain confidence in their new career, SISTEMEC will develop a professional identity through a series of STEM Education Workshops that introduce the scholars to the professional community, and faculty will support the scholars in joining a professional association and attending a conference in their field.

Pre-Fall Orientation

SISTEMEC will develop a three-day pre-fall orientation (bringing it up to one week total) that will bring the incoming students interested in elementary education together as a cohort for the first time; it will lay the foundation for an integrated learning community that will foster relationships to build between education, the sciences and STEM faculty; it will introduce potential scholars to STEM, reinforcing the message that "Science is not scary"; as well as the path to becoming a certified elementary teacher at SHU. 

First-Year Seminar

The SISTEMEC First-Year Seminar will continue the learning community; taught by Dr. Beekey and Professor Maur. They will develop close relationships with the scholars, building on the foundation in the pre-fall orientation and extending the student-faculty relationships through which the scholars will explore varied academic interests and the STEM education path.