STEM

A young teenage girl holds a trophy and wears a medal around her neck

May 27, 2026

From Saturday Academy to State Champion: MSEN Student Turns Stock Market Passion Into Statewide Win

When Gabrielle Jacobs joined Saturday Academy, part of the North Carolina Mathematics and Science Education Network (NC-MSEN) Pre-College Program, she was following in her siblings’ footsteps. Her older brother and…

Screenshot of a Zoom session showing three facilitators and several students on screen, smiling and making the Wolfpack hand sign

Jan 27, 2026

Inquiry in Action: Exploring One Health Through Project Based Inquiry (PBI) Global

In Suzhou, China, a class of high school students from Suzhou North America High School (SNA) began their school day with great anticipation. They had spent weeks in small groups…

A man smiles within a crowd of people sitting at tables in front of laptops

Jan 14, 2026

Educators Work to Advance CS in Elementary Education at Statewide Convening at the Friday Institute

Computer science may be thought of as an advanced subject, but elementary school teachers are already teaching computer science (CS) standards; they just don’t realize it. For example, beginning-of-the-day routines…

Three people interact in a room. Two are sitting, one is standing and talking to the two sitting.

Nov 24, 2025

NCDPI, Friday Institute, MCNC Launch Inaugural Public School Unit Cybersecurity Bootcamp for IT Staff and Leaders

The biggest threat to cybersecurity in K-12 schools is its people, says Samuel Carter, systems architect at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation. The staff, the educators and the students…

A line of six people in business attire pose. A man in the middle holds an award in a frame--the Friday Medal

Nov 21, 2025

Strategist and Senior Program Officer Alfred Mays Awarded 2025 Friday Medal

Alfred Mays is usually behind the scenes in North Carolina’s education initiatives. As the strategist and senior program officer at the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, he’s the one giving out the…

Nov 13, 2025

Data Investigation Processes: Connected, Iterative, and Cyclic

Read the full story here: https://ds4e.substack.com/p/data-investigation-processes-connected

Three scholars chat together in a circle

Nov 12, 2025

LASER BEAM Program Shines On Scholars for Last Year of NSF Grant

Principal Ryan Etheridge found his hotpot dinner with fellow LASER BEAM scholars this summer yielded more than a good meal. During his meal, he communed with scholars about research, data…

Nov 11, 2025

NC State Researchers to Develop Students’ Data Acumen with $1.1M NSF Grant

A 3-year, $1.1 million project funded by the National Science Foundation’s Data Science Corps program will enable NC State researchers to leverage partnerships between data scientists, researchers, data science education…

A group of students pose together in a purple room with the words "Creative Computing" in the background

Oct 22, 2025

2024-2025 Catalyst Grant Symposium Contributes to “Act of Hope”

Since 2018, the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and the NC State College of Education have provided funding for more than 25 research projects through Catalyst Grants. Catalyst Grants support…

A teacher in a classroom speaks to students at a table while they listen in front of tablets and paper

Oct 13, 2025

Friday Institute Executive Director Krista Glazewski to Partner with Rural Communities on $3.5M NSF Award Expanding AI Education Across Three States

Before the public launch of ChatGPT and the widespread interest in AI education in schools, a team of researchers from NC State and Indiana University had a bold idea: teach…