ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- The Army’s research laboratory recently hosted research experiences for tribal undergraduates that not only helped them further explore their interests in scientific research but taught them life lessons that will carry them well into their futures.
The students are former participants of the Army Research Laboratory high school program, Navigate the Future, a three-year effort funded by the National Defense Education Program designed to inspire Native American students to pursue STEM higher education and allied careers and ultimately increase the Native American presence within the Department of Defense.
“I credit the success of this program to the team of Army and DOD scientists and engineers who invested their time each summer to prepare and teach biotechnology and computer science sessions to these high school students,” said Katie Hall, program manager for Navigate the Future.
For the last three years, the program traveled to the students, when DOD, Army and college student mentors, including West Point cadets, headed to Whitehorse High School on the Navajo Nation to provide students with invaluable curriculum-based, hands-on experiences and firsthand exposure and knowledge about STEM career paths in computer science, biotechnology and various other disciplines.
This year, five students who were among the first NTF cohort and who are currently pursuing STEM degrees headed to Maryland to intern at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory for experience in a laboratory environment in a program called NTF Extended.
The students traveled to DEVCOM ARL with Hall on her return trip from Navajo Nation following the year three execution of the program. The students had never flown before and had no guaranteed transportation to the airport, so Hall and team coordinated the timing for her to be able to guide them through the process.
According to Hall, the importance of these students coming to ARL to continue their learning experience is three-fold.
“First, the students were able to gain invaluable technical experience and knowledge by working directly with ARL mentors in laboratory facilities that would otherwise not have been possible,” Hall said. “Second, they have gained practical life skills in traveling, banking, budgeting, prioritizing requirements and developing sound work ethics. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, this has provided the students with life experiences that have expanded their horizons and opened their eyes to opportunities that they would not have previously considered.”
Hall stated that the students adapted very quickly to their internships, which she attributes to their mentors, who she said were all fantastic.
“They put these students at ease, provided sound instruction and truly mentored them throughout their internships,” Hall said. “Students were able to ask questions, seek additional help and truly gain new knowledge and technical skills as well as build confidence in their own abilities.”
According to student intern Marcus Denny, the Navigate the Future Program has opened many doors for him and solidified his choice in becoming a mechanical engineer.
“With this program, I was able to get an internship that allowed me to work in Maryland at the Army Research Laboratory in a STEM-related career choice that I am interested in,” said Denny. “Participating in the DOD NTF High School Program helped me solidify my choice in becoming a mechanical engineer later in the future.”
For Denny, this experience was one that he is very grateful for.
“It means a lot to me that the NTF program was able to provide me and others with this internship in Maryland,” Denny said. “Programs like NTF are not heard of back on the Navajo Nation so I am very grateful that I have had this opportunity provided to me. It is a great and unique experience that it offers me and students who are interested in STEM fields.”
For Shelby Vasku, she didn’t know exactly what to expect when she first signed up for the Navigate the Future Program and then her follow-on internship.
“When I first signed up for the High School Navigate the Future Program, I didn’t know what to expect, but my teacher encouraged me to apply,” said Vasku. “I was surprised that we were being taught by actual DOD scientists and got to interact with West Point cadets. Being mentored by cadets was the best. They were such good role models. The biotechnology experience also definitely influenced me to pursue biology in college.”
Vasku said that she and her classmates learned about DOD internships in NTF, but to her, they honestly never seemed like something any of them would ever be able to afford to do.
“When I was asked if I would be interested in traveling to Maryland to participate in the ARL internship, I was surprised and very excited,” Vasku said. “I couldn’t believe that the DOD was willing to invest in this experience for me. I remember thinking how happy I was that my teacher encouraged me to participate in NTF in the first place and how that experience opened this door.”
Her internship not only brought Vasku a unique opportunity, but also brought her a sense of clarity.
“This summer experience has been incredible and one of the best things I have ever done,” Vasku said. “It has meant so much to me to be here and work side by side with Army scientists and have learned so much. After my first year in college, I was wavering about my degree path, but this experience has inspired me to continue in bio sciences. I am so appreciative of this program, and I hope that my experience will help motivate younger students from my reservation to seek out opportunities in STEM.”
For Vasku, the best part of this summer’s internship was meeting and being mentored by Army scientists and learning what it is like to work in an Army lab.
“It has shown me that I can make my way in a society far from Navajo Nation and among people that have very little understanding of my culture,” Vasku said. “People have been so kind and have been genuinely interested in learning about our customs and beliefs.”
Shania Mitchell’s experience so far in college has only included a virtual lab experience at her school’s satellite location, where she must watch other students conduct the hands-on experiments. During this internship, she was able to do the hands-on activities and apply what she learned in NTF to real-world research and has learned so much more during this internship than she has so far in college.
“I had no idea that the two summers participating in NTF would eventually lead to this summer internship,” said Mitchell. “The internship is helping me figure out what I want to do in the future.”
On top of the laboratory experience, Mitchell stated that she and the other interns were able to meet so many friendly people, visit local states and even go to the beach.
Through the Navigate the Future experience, Zechariah Charlie discovered the path he wants to take for his future career.
“I wasn’t really sure what the high school NTF program would do for me,” said Charlie. “My teacher encouraged me to participate, and I found it really helped me to think about my future. I was thinking about being a teacher and after we did the biotechnology sessions, it helped me decide that I wanted to teach biology to high school students.”
Charlie worked with a wildlife biologist and collected various types of data in the field. He was also able to develop and deliver an invasive species lab session for the students in the Gains in the Education of Mathematics and Science program sessions, which was his first opportunity to actually teach something, and to have it in his area of interest was a bonus.
“Working with my mentor was the best part of my summer experience,” Charlie said. “I had a lot of varied experiences such as real data collection to support reforestation and also tracking the Chesapeake Bay Sturgeon population. My favorite part of my internship was actually working with the students in GEMS. I also enjoyed visiting new places and experiencing new things.”
In similar fashion, Harley Chee’s high school computer science teacher encouraged her to participate in NTF and was trying to facilitate a virtual high school internship for her.
“I knew it was a possibility, but I never imagined I would get a chance for an on-site internship,” Chee said.
Chee was excited but nervous about actually traveling to Maryland but said that going with the other students who were her high school friends from Navajo Nation made it much easier because they were all going through the same thing.
“This opportunity meant a lot to me, because it forced me to step out of my comfort zone when meeting new people and doing new things,” Chee said. “This chance to travel to Maryland and work at ARL is just not something that is normally available to us on the reservation. It means so much that the DoD is willing to invest in our future like this.”
Hall stated that she hopes to bring at least three of the students back next summer to continue their research projects.
For further information on the Navigate the Future Program, visit Student program strives to increase Native American presence in STEM.
The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory, known as DEVCOM ARL, is the Army’s research laboratory. Nested strategically within DEVCOM and the Army Futures Command, ARL’s mission is to Operationalize Science. ARL identifies and executes disruptive research leading to scientific discovery and emerging technologies for Army continuous transformation. A hallmark of ARL’s mission is collaborative partnerships to broaden Army access to expert talent and accelerate transitions of science-enabled capabilities. For more information, visit https://arl.devcom.army.mil/.
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