Program Contact
Daniel Knight
knightdw@colorado.edu
Science-Engineering Inquiry Collaborative In Rural Colorado (SCENIC) fills the need for ongoing CU Boulder engineering outreach in the area of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in Colorado’s underserved rural K-12 schools.
This project connects CU Boulder faculty and students with rural high schools to develop student-driven, inquiry-based science projects.
Project Goals
- Prepare cutting-edge environmental engineering tools that can be applied to science inquiry for K-12 classrooms
- Deploy CU Boulder student mentors to support K-12 teachers and students in implementing project-based learning based on these tools
- Foster collaboration between CU Boulder’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the School of Education, regional universities and rural public schools to develop, research and evaluate the initiative.
Teacher and superintendent assessments from partner school districts demonstrate the need for additional STEM education support in their districts and the further development of an academic pathway from their school districts to CU Boulder. Previous assessment results also indicate that the population SCENIC serves is underrepresented in university STEM majors–60% of participants are female, 37% are Hispanic, and 48% are the first generation in their families to attend college.
CU Boulder partners include the College of Engineering and Applied Science, whose role is to design the educational technology employed in the program, and the CU Boulder School of Education, whose role is to research the impact of the program on participants. SCENIC has also expanded to include partners in the mechanical engineering programs at Colorado Mesa University and Western Colorado University who serve as local resources for schools in the Grand Junction and Gunnison, CO areas. The program is in its twelfth year of servings schools in rural Colorado and currently serves schools across seven school districts.
How it Works
CU Boulder students learn the SCENIC curriculum in Project-Based Learning in Rural Schools, an academic course offered in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The course prepares students to act as mentors to K-12 students and to travel and interact with rural schools. The CU mentors support K-12 students in developing engineering projects, which they then showcase in a poster session at a Science and Engineering Symposium. Symposia are hosted by one of the partner schools and are open to the broader community. Symposium winners are offered a trip to CU Boulder and tour of campus labs, facilities and events.
A similar program just completed its fourth year in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in partnership with Public Lab Mongolia. Six university students from the National University of Mongolia and regional partner universities taught students at five high schools. A CU team travelled to Mongolia to expand the partnership by hosting a summer camp during the summer of 2024.
In academic year 2022-2023, the program developed a soil quality curriculum known as Soil Quality Inquiry (SQ-IQ). SQ-IQ to complement the Air Quality Inquiry Curriculum (AQ-IQ). SQ-IQ will be implemented in Palisade and Delta High Schools next year along with Paonia K-8.
SCENIC: Lone Star Chapter
Additional Info
Lone Star High School
Location
in colorado
Otis
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Union Colony Chapter
Additional Info
Union Colony High School
Location
in colorado
Evans
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Palisade Chapter
Additional Info
Palisade High School
Location
in colorado
Palisade
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Northfork Chapter
Additional Info
Northfork High School
Location
in colorado
Hotchkiss
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Paonia Chapter
Additional Info
Paonia K-8
Location
in colorado
Paonia
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Delta Chapter
Additional Info
Delta High School
Location
in colorado
Delta
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Fruita Chapter
Additional Info
Fruita Monument High School
Location
in colorado
Fruita
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Mountain Valley Chapter
Additional Info
Mountain Valley School
Location
in colorado
Saguache[5]
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Pagosa Springs Chapter
Additional Info
Pagosa Springs High School
Location
in colorado
Pagosa Springs
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Greeley West Chapter
Additional Info
Greeley West High School
Location
in colorado
Greeley
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Ouray Chapter
Additional Info
Ouray School Chapter of SCENIC
Location
in colorado
Ouray
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Pueblo Chapter
Additional Info
Pueblo East Chapter of SCENIC
Location
in colorado
Pueblo
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
SCENIC: Burlington Chapter
Additional Info
Burlington High School Chapter of SCENIC
Location
in colorado
Burlington
Dates
Ongoing
Public or Private
Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)
Program Fee
No charge to attend/participate in activity or program
Sponsoring Units
College of Engineering & Applied Science
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
School of Education
- Program in Learning Sciences and Human Development
Program Partners
- CU Boulder Engineering Partnership Programs at Colorado Mesa and Western Colorado Universities
- Delta County School District: Northfork, Delta High Schools, Paonia K-8
- Weld County School District: Union Colony Preparatory high school, Greeley West High School
- Lone Star School District: Lone Star High School
- Mesa County Valley School District 51: Palisade, Fruita Monument High Schools
- Archuleta School District #50: Pagosa Springs High school
- Mountain Valley School District No. Re 1: Mountain Valley School
- Ouray School District R-1, The Ouray School
- Fort Morgan School District RE-3, Fort Morgan High School
- Pueblo School District 60, Pueblo East High School
- Burlington School District RE-6J, Burlington High School
- SCENIC Mongolia: Public Lab Mongolia, National University of Mongolia, regional partner universities and high schools
Audiences Served
- Historically Excluded/Marginalized/Non-dominant Group(s)
- Rural Communities
- Students - First Generation College - going/bound
- Students - High School
- Students - Middle School
- Teachers - Middle School
- Teachers - High School