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Driving innovation for National STEM Day, every day

November 8, 2023

Ryan Rayno, DEVCOM Headquarters

A team participating in the Self-Drive Challenge makes adjustments to their vehicle on the final day of the 30th Annual Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition June 5, 2023, at Oakland University in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, DEVCOM, Ground Vehicle Systems Center has been a major contributor to the IGVC since 1993. DEVCOM GVSC fosters the advancement of science, technology, engineering and math education through its continued work with college students. (U.S. Army photo by Christopher Estrada)

Stella Lee, a U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, DEVCOM, Chemical Biological Center program engineer, teaches children and families about air pressure by demonstrating its effects on a marshmallow at the Magic of Science Fair and Family Festival June 10, 2023, at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. DEVCOM CBC routinely encourages interest in science, technology, engineering and math amongst school-aged children through educational events. (U.S. Army photo by Aeriel Storey)

A student receives guidance from one of her supervising teachers during a U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, DEVCOM, Ground Vehicle Systems Center K-12 STEM Summer Camp June 11, 2023, at Lake Superior State University in Marie, Michigan. The week-long camp is part of DEVCOM GVSC’s efforts to promote science, technology, engineering and mathematics to K-12 students around Michigan. DEVCOM GVSC regularly provides unique, STEM-driven education opportunities to students outside of the typical school year. (U.S. Army photo by Christopher Estrada)

Austin Monroe, a summer hire employed at U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, DEVCOM, Ground Vehicle Systems Center, delivers a presentation to an audience of DEVCOM GVSC employees during the 2023 Summer Hire Expo July 19, 2023, at Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Michigan. The expo is an opportunity for DEVCOM GVSC’s interns to showcase their summer work and network with DEVCOM GVSC employees, helping them to better transition to DEVCOM GVSC’s workforce after college. DEVCOM and its centers work to advance science, technology, engineering and math through its strategic recruitment and education programs. (U.S. Army photo by Christopher Estrada)

Dr. Eric Moore, U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, DEVCOM, Deputy to the Commanding General, center, DEVCOM Women of Color STEM awardees and awardee supervisors pose for a group photo Oct. 14, 2023, at the Women of Color STEM Conference in Detroit, Michigan. DEVCOM and its centers promote the advancement of science, technology, engineering and math through collaboration with their education, scientific and technological partners. (DoD photo by Kelly Foster)

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. – National STEM/STEAM Day is a day to celebrate science, technology, engineering, art and math throughout the United States every November 8th, which was chosen as a play on, N-O-V8, or “innovate.”

Since its inception, the spirit of National STEM/STEAM Day has been to encourage the advancement of STEM/STEAM education within the country’s schools.

According to Dr. Eric Moore, U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, or DEVCOM, Deputy to the Commanding General, DEVCOM continues that spirit through its work with high school and college students and recruitment.

“We have teams from our centers that are doing outstanding work with students by helping them pursue their interests in STEM and lets them see possibilities for the future,” he said. “I think young people want to do something that is not only fun and allows them to contribute, but also allows them to satisfy their intellectual curiosity.”

“We have teams from our centers that are doing outstanding work with students by helping them pursue their interests in STEM and lets them see possibilities for the future,” he said. “I think young people want to do something that is not only fun and allows them to contribute, but also allows them to satisfy their intellectual curiosity.”

Similarly, Moore wants those interested in STEM/STEAM fields to know that there are government programs to help drive the advancement of a dynamic, well-educated workforce equipped with STEM skills.

“There are outstanding programs that help young people get a head start,” Moore said. “For example, we have the Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation, or SMART, scholarship program, which is an excellent program that pays for your education and gives you a job.”

The SMART scholarship program is a combined educational and workforce development opportunity for STEM students funded by the Department of Defense.

“The recipients receive full tuition, annual stipends, internships and guaranteed employment with the DoD, and in our case, with DEVCOM, after graduation,” Moore explained. “It’s a great opportunity and the program pays for a student’s education for five years.”

Moore believes DEVCOM has the talent that it does not just because of these programs, but because of the opportunities DEVCOM provides to play a pivotal role in the advancement of STEM fields within the United States.

“DEVCOM puts you at the forefront of collaborating and working with scientific and technological partners to enable the DoD to be a technological leader,” Moore said.

“DEVCOM puts you at the forefront of collaborating and working with scientific and technological partners to enable the DoD to be a technological leader,” Moore said.

“We are a world class team of science and technology experts, explorers and developers, and we focus on empowering the future American Soldier,” he said. “We have interesting facilities, and we have interesting problems, so our scientists and engineers have the opportunity to tackle some of the nation’s greatest challenges.”

To learn more about the DoD SMART scholarship-for-service program, visit https://www.smartscholarship.org/smart.

The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, known as DEVCOM, is home to thousands of Army scientists, engineers, technicians and analysts working around the globe to leverage cutting-edge technologies and empower the American warfighter with the data and abilities to see, sense, make decisions and act faster than our adversaries – today and in the future.

As part of Army Futures Command, DEVCOM takes calculated risks to find new technological solutions each day. Our experts drive innovation, improve existing technologies and engineer solutions to technical challenges. Our work goes beyond theory to simulation and prototyping. We take potential science and technology solutions from the lab “into the dirt” for experimentation alongside Army Soldiers. DEVCOM prides itself as a global ecosystem of innovators, from world-class universities and large defense contractors, to small, minority-owned businesses and international allies and partners.

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