Designing the Next Big Thing in Education
Megan Byers, a mechanical engineer-turned-educational technologist, never imagined her passion for teaching would lead her to develop InstructSTEM — an online professional development program and community of practice designed to equip STEM educators with evidence-based pedagogical strategies. Launched in early 2025, the platform aims to support high school and college-level STEM teaching and learning through…
AI has transformed—and continues to transform—how we live, work, and learn. Yet, as AI tools become increasingly powerful, the gap in AI literacy among Americans continues to grow. Following my HDFS scholarship in the School of Education, the MEITE program has given me the confidence to tackle difficult challenges, like the AI literacy gap. I…
As a teacher, Erika Murray knew how hard it was working in a classroom. As a student, she’s doing something about it. “Teachers need help!” Murray said. “Teaching is extremely rewarding, but it is also exhausting.” Murray, who taught for seven years in kindergarten, and first- and fifth-grade classrooms, is now a student in the…
After teaching for four years, Alexandra Lewis wanted to deepen her impact on students’ lives. After working as a teacher overseas and in a small school in Durham, Michael Berro was driven to learn how to scale up educational innovations to help more young people. They found their way to the UNC School of Education’s…
