Ignite: Evaluating Impact of STEM Design and Mentorship in Durham (2026-2027)

Background

Durham sits at the heart of North Carolina’s Research Triangle, a region known for innovation and STEM opportunity. Durham Public Schools serve a diverse community of learners who bring creativity and curiosity to their education. Yet access to high-quality, hands-on STEM programming is uneven across the district due to resource constraints.

Research shows that experiential STEM programs strengthen academic performance, build problem-solving skills and expand students’ sense of belonging in STEM. Informal learning environments — such as museums, after school programs and university partnerships — can be especially effective by connecting STEM concepts to students’ lived experiences.

As Ignite enters its fourth year of research and implementation, there remains a need to better understand how repeated or multi-year engagement impacts long-term STEM identity formation, resilience and confidence among young learners in Durham.

Project Description

Ignite is a human-centered engineering design program developed by Duke Engineering in partnership with the Museum of Life and Science. It includes three levels of programming:

Ignite Learners (middle school)
Ignite Makers (high school)
Ignite Entrepreneurs (extension experience for returning Makers)

Each program invites students to address real-world community challenges through engineering design and is supported by undergraduate mentors known as “Trainers.”

In 2026-2027, the project team will evaluate how repeated participation — such as joining Ignite for multiple years or progressing from one level to the next — influences students’ engineering identity, resilience, STEM self-efficacy and community connection. Approximately 80 middle school and 30 high school students will participate, with an estimated 30% returning for a second or third Ignite experience.

The research team will use a mixed methods approach with students administering validated pre- and post-surveys, conducting classroom observations and thematically coding engagement data. They will test the reliability and consistency of evaluation metrics across cohorts, refine instruments based on preliminary findings and analyze whether sustained engagement corresponds with measurable student growth. This work will contribute both to the improvement of Ignite and to broader scholarship on informal STEM education.

Anticipated Outputs

Longitudinal impact report on retention and outcomes across Ignite programs
Evaluation of the impact of repeated or multi-year participation
Validated evaluation toolkit for informal STEM programs
Iteratively refined survey and observation instruments
Annual program implementation reaching ~110 Durham-area students
Mixed-methods research supporting future grant proposals
Conference presentations and potential publications

Student Opportunities

Ideally, this project team will include 3 graduate students and 12 undergraduate students across three subteams: research, evaluation and curriculum. Students from engineering, education, psychology, sociology, design, public policy, data science or related fields are encouraged to apply. Students who are passionate about STEM equity, informal education and community engagement will be a strong fit for the team.

Subteam activities will include:

Research subteam: Students will frame research questions, analyze outcomes and examine how engineering identity and resilience develop.
Evaluation subteam: Students will participate in data collection, qualitative coding, survey refinement, reliability testing and mixed-methods analysis.
Curriculum subteam: Students will support the development of inclusive, hands-on design activities and collaborate with the Museum of Life and Science on implementation.

All students will receive training in IRB procedures, research ethics, data analysis, facilitation skills and community-engaged learning. Team members will also interact directly with middle and high school participants during program sessions at Duke and the Museum of Life and Science.

Graduate students will have opportunities to mentor undergraduates, lead subteams, coordinate data management and support IRB submissions.

Weekly full-team meetings will support shared learning and planning, while weekly subeam meetings will focus on deliverables and reflective practice. Returning team members will serve as subteam leads to support continuity across project years.

In Fall 2026, this team will meet on Mondays from 3:05-4:20 p.m.

See the related Data+ project for Summer 2026; there is a separate application process for students who are interested in this optional component.

Timing

Summer 2026 – Summer 2027

Summer 2026 (optional):

Analyze 2025-2026 data
Seek IRB approval
Interview stakeholders
Participate in Data+ (optional)

Fall 2026:

Subteam training and literature reviews
Observation practice in fall high school program
Iterative refinement of surveys, curriculum and evaluation tools
Ongoing analysis of 2025-2026 data

Spring 2027:

Implement Spring 2027 Ignite Learners program
Administer surveys and conduct classroom observations
Analyze new data and evaluate multi-year participation effects

Summer 2027 (optional):

Synthesize longitudinal findings
Finalize metric validation
Draft publications, conference abstracts and dissemination materials

Crediting

Academic credit available for fall and spring semesters

See related Data+ summer project, Evaluating Impact of STEM Design and Mentorship in Durham (2026), and earlier related team, Building STEM and Community Identity Through Design Thinking (2025-2026).