NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Dr. Calvin Mackie, founder of STEM Global Action and STEM NOLA, was awarded the Louisiana Association of Educators (LAE) prestigious President’s Award for his commitment to “serving children and creating opportunities for them to access a robust STEM Education regardless of their circumstances.”
In receiving the LAE President’s Award at their Representative Assembly, Dr. Mackie told the educators how he grew up in a household without many books. “But I am who I am today because of teachers like you,” he said. “My parents made sure that I was prepared to learn. And they turned me over to the trusted hands of amazing teachers like you.”
Today, Dr. Mackie, a former tenured engineering professor at Tulane University, holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Morehouse College, as well as a Bachelor’s, Master’s and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech.
In 2021, Dr. Mackie launched STEM Global Action, a campaign and network of affiliates that pursue advancement of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education for children and parents, especially in Black & Brown communities. His flagship affiliate is STEM NOLA, a nonprofit that he launched in 2013. His initiatives have impacted more than 100,000 students, 20,000 families and 5,000 schools across the U.S., and in five countries. He also hosts a popular podcast, Let’s Talk STEM with Dr. Calvin Mackie.
Dr. Mackie told the educators that his goal is to “de-mystify STEM,” removing any paranoia about science and math, so that “kids can come to school better prepared for great teachers like you to teach them.” Dr. Mackie told how his son had come home from elementary school not wanting to continue with science because the teacher was boring. Dr. Mackie responded by leading “hands on” science experiments in his garage with his son and neighborhood children, which lead to the start of STEM NOLA.
ABOUT STEM GLOBAL ACTION
Dr. Calvin Mackie founded STEM NOLA in 2013. The New Orleans non-profit is committed to expanding STEM education, especially in communities of color. In July 2021, Dr. Mackie launched STEM Global Action, a campaign and network pursuing STEM education for children, parents and communities. His initiatives have impacted more than 100,000 students, 20,000 families and 5,000 schools across the U.S., and in five countries. An archive of Let’s Talk STEM with Dr. Calvin Mackie podcast episodes is HERE.
The STEM Global Action website includes:
STEM Global Action Today, a newsletter with comprehensive articles on some of the most important issues related to STEM, and takes readers into the lives of STEM educators and their extraordinary students, who will be the STEM leaders of tomorrow.
STEM Global Action Data Center, a one-stop resource library for studies, reports, video presentations and news coverage about STEM.
