GOLD2023

STEM Generation Inc

Leveling the playing field

aka Science Fair Fun   |   Arvada, CO   |  www.stemgeneration.org

Mission

Since 2017, STEM Generation, has been on a mission to close the gap in STEM learning opportunities and achievement by developing and delivering high-quality STEM programs to Colorado front range schools districts in underserved and underrepresented communities with 50% or more free/reduced lunch enrollment. STEM Generation’s fully donated programs, allow educators in low-income communities to provide engaging and innovative STEM activities to their students at no cost to them or the district. STEM Generation emphasizes that regardless of color, race, gender identity, or socioeconomic status, all students should be afforded the opportunity to grow and develop important STEM skills and access the tools needed to succeed in STEM, and challenge the norms of what STEM professionals look like.

Ruling year info

2017

Executive Director

Leslie Marshall

Main address

12650 W. 64th Ave Unit E #466

Arvada, CO 80004 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

82-2360707

NTEE code info

Youth Development Programs (O50)

Alliance/Advocacy Organizations (W01)

Alliance/Advocacy Organizations (R01)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990-N.

Communication

Blog

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Starting as early as elementary school, STEM Generation address inequities in K-12 STEM support, resources & opportunity at low-resource, high-need schools. These inequities exasperate disparities in the STEM workforce: over 50% of post secondary graduates are women, yet women comprise 27% of the STEM workforce and the general US population of color is 31% (non-Asian), yet they comprise 9% of the STEM workforce. Students – particularly girls – start to decide by 3rd grade whether they are capable or incapable in Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math (STEM), while elementary school teachers have the greatest need for support and resources in this area. By the time they reach 6th grade, middle and upper-income children have likely spent 6,000 more hours learning than kids born into poverty. This is reflected in a 42% achievement gap between poor students and their more affluent peers at below basic 4th grade math proficiency in Denver, one of the largest gaps in the US.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

District-wide Science & Engineering Fair

The District-wide Science & Engineering Fair provides fair organizers with logistical and communication pieces to lay the foundation for an inclusive and skills-based STEM Generation Fair. Fair organizers get 14 weeks of support and all of the communication pieces for students and their grownups. We connect enrolled schools with qualified judges from their nearby community during their fairs.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Ethnic and racial groups

Our STEM Curriculum packages, provide students in high-needs schools with hands-on opportunities in which they can immerse themselves in scientific, project-based learning experiences that ignite creativity, self-expression, and increased interest in pursuing a STEM career.
There are two hands-on kit programs which are divided into grade appropriate lessons for students in grades K-2 or 3-6. These unique kits, can be used during the school day, in after school programs, or during summer camp.
This program also addresses the need for educator and administrative support by providing educators with all materials needed to run a successful program, including program kits, lessons, rubrics, ongoing support, and professional development, in which educators can earn continuing education units necessary to maintain licensure in the state of Colorado.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Ethnic and racial groups

Our Diverse STEM Stories: Choosing a STEM path program helps students in high-needs schools, in grades 3-12 build positive STEM identities through inquisitive, interactive discussions with diverse STEM role models in a virtual setting. This program affords students the opportunity to learn about and embrace the path to successful STEM careers, by engaging with diversely represented STEM professionals.
In addition to the Diverse STEM Stories: Choosing a STEM path program, we help create connections between students in grades 3-12 and university students. This connection engages students in meaningful conversations about different educational paths to successful STEM careers.

Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups
Adolescents
Children
Preteens
Young adults

Where we work

Videos

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

STEM Generation levels the tech & engineering playing field using a 21st Century approach to Science Fairs as our platform: STEM Generation Fairs. We equip girls & students of color at high-need schools with leadership and STEM skills they need to tap into the strong economic opportunities all around them.

We envision is a day when K12 children, particularly girls and students of color living in poverty, experience:
(1) equitable K12 STEM education opportunities, resources and support compared to those from middle- to high-income families,
(2) the opportunity to develop their leadership and STEM skills so they can tap into the strong economic opportunities all around them, creating a more diverse US STEM workforce.
(3) effective STEM mentorship through fully-scalable, sustainable programming built around innovative partnerships between the public and private sectors.

STEM Generation is the first and only nonprofit to level the tech and engineering playing field through fully-scalable programming in the context of a 21st Century approach to Science & Engineering Fairs: STEM Generation Fairs. We tackle inequities in K12 STEM education opportunities, support and resources from every angle by supporting students and their grownups.

STEM Generation's strategy for achieving our mission nationwide, is through partnerships with high-needs schools and with private/public sectors to facilitate our two innovative programs:

(1) TEACH: empowers teachers to teach leadership and STEM skills development to their students in the context of the process of student led, authentic, innovative STEM Generation Fair projects. This is the essential equity piece, whereby the whole support structure for students is brought into the classroom to accommodate each students' interests and learning goals, as opposed to at home where significant inequities in
support often occurs.

(2) IMPLEMENT: lays the foundation for a fun, inclusive and skills-based STEM Generation Fair, while connecting schools with the private/public sector so they can engage with their community all around the fair.

STEM Generation has invested in the front-end costs to build a platform for facilitating our programs online so that they are fully-scalable and become sustainable through public and private sector partnerships by 2021. We have a strong and diverse working Board of Directors and Advisory Board who are passionately devoted to achieving our mission. Our team comprises of executive-level women and men of different ethnic backgrounds and diverse expertise, skill-sets and professional networks.

TEACH:
2018/19 Pilot served 2 Elementary Schools, 4 teachers and approximately 150 students.
2019/20 Launch to 20 Public Elementary & Middle Schools serving > 50% FRL, serving 40 teachers and approximately 500 students.

IMPLEMENT:
2018/19
- Launch served 46 Elementary & Middle Schools, approximately 3,500 students
- Alpha tested our Judge Match Program for 3 public sector volunteers to engage with students from 1 Title 1 school.
2019/20
- Serve 50 Public Elementary & Middle Schools serving > 50% FRL, and approximately 3,800 students
- Beta test our Judge Match Program for 25 public/private sector volunteers to engage with students at 10 schools.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We shared information about our current feedback practices.

  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to identify actionable feedback

Financials

STEM Generation Inc
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

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Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

STEM Generation Inc

Board of directors
as of 11/16/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Mr Jonathan Krause

Synclarity Consulting

Term: 2021 - 2024

Janelle Johnson

Director of the Colorado STEM Ecosystem & Professor of STEM Education at Metropolitan State University of Denver

Chrissy Stachl

Founder and CEO of Reflecting Equity

George Kite

George Kite LLC CPA

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Not applicable

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 11/16/2023
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Gender identity
Female, Not transgender (cisgender)
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or straight
Disability status
Person without a disability

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

No data

Disability

No data

Equity strategies

Last updated: 10/24/2023

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
  • We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
  • We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
  • We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
Policies and processes
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.