Serving, Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Midland and Saginaw Counties

MiSTEM Overview

Michigan, together with business, education, and community partners, is embarking on a journey to create a MiSTEM Network throughout the state. This opportunity grew out of Governor Snyder’s MiSTEM Advisory Council recommendation to make Michigan a world leader in STEM education.

The Council report lists four pillars as necessary components to establish a system that will produce STEM-equipped students and educators. These pillars are: create a STEM culture, empower STEM teachers, integrate business and education, and ensure high quality STEM experiences. The work of the MiSTEM Network is to build on existing STEM networks to create a STEM ecosystem that supports and implements the components outlined in the four pillars.

The East Central Michigan Prosperity Region MiSTEM group formed in 2018-2019 and has been diligently working to establish goals for each pillar.  Strategic planning continues in order to develop programming for the first year (2018-19) including goals, list of planned programs by goal, assessment questions for regional performance effectiveness, and references for data gathering. Like us on Facebook.

Our Work Revolves Around Four Pillars

Create a STEM Culture: by using a systemic approach to enable community engagement, experiential learning, place-based education and by building capacity in our leaders, teachers and learners to create solutions to real-world situations.

Empower STEM Teachers: ​by creating opportunities for professional development, capacity building and support, and by connecting teachers with community partnerships that enable a diverse array of STEM-related engagement.

Integrate Business and Education: by bringing leaders together, establishing a common language, co-designing multidisciplinary real-world projects, and by providing authentic learning opportunities to help train a robust and diverse STEM literate workforce.

Ensure High-Quality STEM Experiences: that focus on real-world situations, immerses students in place-based, hands-on, experiential open-ended exploration, engages students in productive teamwork and integrates rigorous math and science content where failure is seen as a necessary part of the learning process.

The MiSTEM East Central Michigan Region

The MiSTEM East Central Region is comprised of the following counties and districts:

MiSTEM East Central Michigan Region Strategic Plan

VIEW STRATEGIC PLAN

East Central Michigan Region Career Outlook

VIEW CAREER OUTLOOK

Contact Us:

Executive Director, State of Michigan MiSTEM Network

  • Megan Schrauben

East Central Region MiSTEM Advisory Committee:

  • Kristen Wenzel, Michigan Works Saginaw
  • Paul Hungerford, Gratiot-Isabella Regional Education Service District
  • Tara Mager, Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District
  • Jon Searles, Midland Educational Service Agency
  • Julie Cunningham, Central Michigan University
  • Jill Jarvis, Covenant Healthcare
  • Lori Flippin, Great Lakes Bay Regional Alliance (GLBRA)
  • Mike Vieu, Bay-Arenac Intermediate School District
  • Jeff Collier/ Eric Rutherford, Saginaw Intermediate School District
  • Rich VanTol, Bay-Arenac Intermediate School District/GLBRA Out-of-School Time
  • Harry Leaver, Central Michigan Manufacturing
  • Raquel Leadsma, Hemlock Semiconductor
  • Kelly Wehner, Case Systems

State of Michigan MiSTEM Network