Among the multitude of high schools represented at N.C. State, the North Carolina School of Science & Mathematics stands out as one of the most academically invigorating. With multiple educational programs and a research-based curriculum, NCSSM is developing new ways to provide higher-level education to its students.
One of these programs is the Summer Accelerator Program, which extends the NCSSM’s higher-level courses to a global audience. This summer, the program offers aerospace engineering, which enables students to both design and launch their own rockets.
Aaron Plourde, the director of the NCSSM Communications office, described the program as one of the many tools the school uses to provide opportunities for higher-level education.
“NCSSM is and has always been a cost-free school open to qualified rising juniors who are residents of North Carolina,” Plourde said. “What is new this year is that NCSSM now offers a fee-based summer program, Accelerator, which extends NCSSM’s high-level learning opportunities to students from all over the world. With a growing need for the kind of eduction we deliver, our goal is to provide world-class, STEM-focused learning to as many students as possible.”
The Summer Accelerator is a blended three-week summer program, meaning it is partially taught online. This allows students from anywhere in the world to be a part of NCSSM. Courses within the program, such as Music of the World, attempt to bridge the gap between the humanities and sciences. In this course, students analyze the connection between music and math so students can compose their own work.
“There’s a growing demand for high-caliber education,” Plourde said. “As college bound students look for opportunities that provide a well-rounded education, there are things that differentiate us as a school. We have a very strong, rigorous academic program. We have a focus on STEM curriculum. But we also take a holistic approach to education, ensuring that students gain knowledge and experience in the fine arts, sports, humanities, interdisciplinary courses and health and wellness.”
Through programs such as Summer Accelerator, NCSSM heavily emphasizes academic research to prepare students for the future. Plourde said that by having students participate in hands-on activities, they then have a means of applying their various skills.
“I think part of what we do well is to give students both a deep knowledge and understanding of subjects through classroom learning while also allowing them to apply what they have learned,” Plourde said. “Some of the ways we do that is through providing several research opportunities, by providing hands-on learning in areas like engineering and technology and through the many clubs, extra-curricular activities and academic competitions we help make available to all students.”
Plourde also said the diversity among the NCSSM student population is essential to the school’s growth.
This year, 312 students graduated, representing all of North Carolina’s congressional districts and 72 of the state’s 100 counties. Plourde said these numbers are generally consistent from year to year, which is a result of the school’s recruiting methods.
“NCSSM is legislatively mandated to take students as equally as possible from all of North Carolina’s congressional districts,” Plourde said. “We recruit students from all corners of the state so that NCSSM is fully serving the educational needs of all of North Carolina.”
In addition to the Summer Accelerator, NCSSM also provides higher-level education through its online and distance-education programs.
The online program is offered to juniors and seniors in North Carolina. According to Plourde, students who are interested must submit applications before they are able to take various courses through the NCSSM system.
“Additionally, we also serve students through distance education,” Plourde said.
For distance education, a student may really want to take calculus, but there is not a calculus teacher in his or her school. According to Plourde, NCSSM offers distance education and partners with that school district and can provide high-level courses to students across the state so they can take the courses they desire.
“A central part of our mission is to provide a high-level, holistic education with a focus on STEM to qualified and motivated students, no matter where they come from in North Carolina,” Plourde said.
Ankesh Madan, a recent N.C. State graduate and NCSSM alumnus, discussed how the school prepared him for both college and all of his future endeavors.
“I grew up in Asheboro, a small city with not as much exposure to certain educational programs,” Madan said. “NCSSM opened my eyes to the world a little bit.”
Madan graduated N.C. State in May with a degree in materials science and engineering. He will be attending Duke University in the fall to work on his doctorate. In addition, he is currently working on a startup program that he hopes to continue in the future.
“The research started at NCSSM,” Madan said. “I have another five or six years ahead of me. I learned that I liked research at Science and Math, but I realized I liked the business side as well while I was at State. I hope to get my MBA as well while I’m at Duke. That way it would be a combination of the two so I can go into an entrepreneurship after that.”
Madan said he would love to work with startup programs as well as commercializing technology. His goal is to improve the level of communication between the scientific community and the general public.
“There is a lot of incredible research that is done every day but that never sees the light of day,” Madan said. “Scientists are notoriously bad at communication or at least communicating the impact of their work to the general masses. I want to bridge that gap in some way.”
