As you begin the process of developing a STEM Pathways Plan for your organization, it is essential that you begin by setting up a STEM Pathways Planning Team to help in the development and possibly future implementation of this plan.
|Tips for Forming your Team
The following list presents a number of suggestions to follow in order to increase the effectiveness of your team:
- This team SHOULD be comprised of individuals from both inside and outside of your organization who bring unique perspectives but all share a vested interest in the success of the plan. Possible team members may include – STEM Faculty, CTE Faculty, Non-STEM Faculty, K-12 Educators, Institution Administrators, Grant Writers, Community and Industry Members.
- The team size SHOULD be limited (suggested 5-10 members) where each individual represents a larger group they are responsible for communicating with. This will ensure the group is large enough to bring in diverse perspective but not so large as to hinder effective communication among members.
- The team MUST have a designated chairperson to coordinate meetings, gather and share progress, and provide a central point of contact for both members and outside groups.
- The team MUST have a designated recorder to take notes, and organize and share resources as needed.
- The team SHOULD meet regularly to develop their STEM plan.
Questions to Consider
In forming this team, the following questions should be considered:
- What is the role of the planning team?
- What does success look like?
- What are the key deliverables? e.g STEM Plan, Assessment, Funding Model
- Who should be on the team?
- What will be each team member’s role and their responsibility?
- How often will the team need to meet?
- For how long will the team meet (i.e. years)?
- When/where will the team meet?
- How will the team adapt for changing staff?
- Will there be any expenses related to this team and if so how will these expenses be covered?
Planning Team Development Form
Use this form to document the development of your team and share the final setup with all members and outside individuals who may inquire for various reasons. Be sure to save the filled in Team Development Form because you will need to attach a copy of it to your Request for Detailed Assessment, during the next step in this STEM Pathways Guide. Although you may have industry and K12 members on your planning team, only team members from your college will take the Detailed Assessment. The other representatives external to your organization will be valuable partners during STEM Planning.