College Readiness Workshop: Using Narrative Story to Support Students as STEM Professionals

The narratives we tell ourselves influence our thoughts and actions. However, STEM students may not even know what those narratives are and how the stories affect them. In many cases, students are subjected to a rigorous technical curriculum soon after they step foot on campus and they may question if they belong in

STEM or even in higher education at all. Story is a tool that can allow students to make connections between their past, current, and potential future selves to develop their identities as engineers, mathematicians, and scientists. A student who may not otherwise view themselves as an engineer, mathematician, or scientist-a curious person, an entrepreneur, a researcher, or a part of the institute’s ecosystem-may be able to demonstrate their potential to themselves and others through their lived experiences via story. Providing time for students to develop and tell their stories is a powerful way to validate the vast experiences students bring with them to college. Likewise, as
faculty, we value knowing our students.

Inspired by the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) on Stories project that began in 2020, our current efforts to bring story to Rose-Hulman reflects our interest in supporting our students in finding their passion and identity as an engineer, scientist, or mathematician. As both participants and architects of story experiences, in this workshop, we will share specific examples of ways to integrate story in classes, research and the campus ecosystem, including the recently launched Story@Rose podcast. Further, we will engage session participants in creating stories and giving feedback with the opportunity to consider application in
participants’ own endeavors.