JoinSTEM Showcase
National Conference in Minneapolis
The STEM Showcase — A Hands-On Welcome to Minn25!
Start your Minn25 experience with an engaging preview of Minnesota’s vibrant science and STEM scene. The STEM Showcase features interactive displays, live demonstrations, a mobile zoo experience, and hands-on activities from innovative programs and organizations across the state.
Mingle with presenters, explore local attractions, grab a bite from the food cart, and enjoy casual networking before the official conference begins. It’s a fun, low-key way to connect, discover, and ease into the energy of Minn25!
November 12 • 1:00-3:00pm | Exhibit Hall C of the Minneapolis Convention Center
Climate Café @ The STEM Showcase
A Place for Connection and Inspiration
Are you climate curious? Wondering how to make climate change a meaningful, manageable, and inspiring topic for your students? Pull up a chair at the Climate Café, a relaxed, café-style space where science educators connect, share, and recharge.
- Educator community: Swap stories, challenges, and solutions with teachers from across the country who are making climate learning engaging and empowering.
- Classroom-ready resources: Explore instructional materials and practical strategies you can immediately apply in your classroom.
- Conversations that matter: Chat with climate scientists, experienced educators, and mental health professionals who can help you navigate both the science and the emotions of teaching climate change.
Presented by:
Innovation Partners
Aeon for Ocean is a Minnesota-based nonprofit that educates inland communities, especially kids, about ocean conservation and marine life through engaging programs ranging from school presentations to virtual reality. These initiatives inspire youth to explore marine science and lead their communities toward a healthier, more sustainable planet.
https://www.bellmuseum.umn.edu/
The Bell Museum is Minnesota’s state natural history museum, founded in 1872 and serving learners of all ages for over 150 years. Visit our world-renowned wildlife dioramas, the hands-on Touch and See Lab, and tour the cosmos in the Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium.
https://www.case4learning.org/
Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE 4 Learning) is an initiative of the National Council for Agricultural Education that provides rigorous and relevant curriculum and professional development for high-school and middle-school agri-science teachers.
The Center for Great Lakes Literacy (CGLL, pronounced “sea gull”) is a collaborative effort led by Sea Grant educators throughout the Great Lakes watershed. CGLL fosters a community of Great Lakes and freshwater stewards by engaging, inspiring and supporting educators, scientists, and youth.
https://www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org/
Our mission is to connect individuals and communities in Minnesota to the resources they need to identify and implement community-based clean energy projects. We can assist schools with the statewide Solar for Schools program and provide curricular resource ideas for clean energy education.
The East Metro Water Resource Education Program (EMWREP) is a local government partnership that works to educate and engage local communities in protecting lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands and groundwater resources. We have curriculum modules and resources available to teach K-12 students about a variety of natural resources topics, including watersheds, ecology, plants and animals, and stormwater.
No Boundaries to the Boundary Waters is the education program of Friends of the Boundary Waters. We strive to bring the ecology and wonder of the Boundary Waters into classrooms across Minnesota and the United States through canoe trips, classroom visits, and online resources.
Just B Solar sparks curiosity and empowers the next generation through hands-on solar energy education. We deliver dynamic training and outreach programs that introduce youth and young adults to the power of renewable energy—especially solar photovoltaics—while aligning with Next Generation Science Standards. Our mission is to build brighter futures, one solar panel at a time.
The KidWind Project has been working with educators to integrate clean energy into classrooms for 20 years. As the world is increasingly powered by clean energy, it is more critical than ever that we develop a workforce and public who understand the complexities of this new power generation.
The Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom program (MAITC) empowers K–12 educators to infuse agriculture in their science, social studies, language arts and nutrition curricula.
Minnesota GIS Education promotes the development of GIS experience and skills in Minnesota K-12 students. We support educators integrating GIS into their teaching and connect students to geospatial careers.
Home to more than 100,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia has something for everyone—for free.
Minnesota Sea Grant’s mission is to engage with communities along Lake Superior and Minnesota’s inland waters to understand water science needs, support scientific research to address those needs, and provide results to communities to help them apply science-based knowledge to solve problems, support and enhance local economies, and sustain ecosystem services for future generations.
https://www.minnstate.edu/coe/index.html
Minnesota State hosts eight Centers of Excellence, each serving a major industry that faces significant workforce challenges. The centers collaborate with industry and educators to attract and prepare students for success in high-demand careers. Strategically located throughout the state, the Minnesota State Centers of Excellence drive workforce innovation through education and industry collaboration, providing thought leadership on workforce development in their respective industries.
The Minnesota STEM Ecosystem brings together Industry, K12 Education, Higher Education, and Out-of-School STEM Learning Programs to align formal and informal STEM education with workforce needs, expand access to high-quality programming, and drive innovation and workforce development through regional and statewide collaboration. The Minnesota STEM Ecosystem is a statewide program housed in the Southeast Service Cooperative with more than 50 learning partners throughout Minnesota.
https://mnzoo.org/programs-events/
The Minnesota Zoo offers award-winning exhibits showcasing over 4,700 animals to discover from tropical rainforests, northern plains, oceans and reefs, the Russian Far East, and even a rural farm. Located just minutes south of the Mall of America, we are open 363 days a year with miles of indoor and outdoor trails to explore.
Joining NSTA means becoming part of a vibrant community dedicated to advancing science education. Whether you’re looking to expand your professional network, access top-tier learning resources, or make a meaningful impact on the future of science and STEM education, NSTA membership provides the tools, connections, and support you need.
https://www.nsta.org/awards-and-competitions
NSTA’s Competitions Division brings science to life with programs that empower teachers and inspire K–12 students. In partnership with Shell and Toshiba, NSTA offers hands-on competitions, engaging learning experiences, educator recognition, and professional development that spark curiosity, fuel creativity, and nurture a lasting love of discovery.
RREAL works to make renewable energy accessible to all, especially the disadvantaged in Central MN. Our programs focus on education and community outreach, and project development through partnerships with organizations like Habitat for Humanity.
The Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory is a hub for pioneering research in experimental and computational fluid mechanics, hydrology, and earth-surface dynamics. For over 80 years, our innovative and adaptable facilities have attracted trailblazers, problem solvers, and visionary thinkers. SAFL transcends traditional academic boundaries, embracing a spirit of curiosity and unorthodox collaboration. By fostering a culture of innovation, our diverse network of scholars and skilled engineers delivers groundbreaking solutions to the most pressing environmental science and engineering challenges, deepening our understanding of Earth’s dynamic systems.
Spark-Y is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit empowering youth through hands-on education rooted in sustainability and entrepreneurship. We partner with schools and community organizations to integrate teaching academic content and real-world projects such as aquaponics, urban farming, and sustainable agriculture to help students and young adults build technical and leadership skills.
STARBASE Minnesota, Inc. is a STEM education nonprofit offering free onsite programming and STEM kits to schools across the state of Minnesota. Students engage in the DoD STARBASE program, available at other locations nationwide, at our state-of-the-art facilities on the MN Air National Guard bases in St. Paul and Duluth.
https://www.stcloudstate.edu/planetarium/
Stop by to learn more about the hands-on programs and educational outreach events our organization has to offer to K-12 students, their teachers, undergraduate students, and members of the public!
https://mn.sourcewell.org/education/STEMbound
STEMbound is a dynamic educational support program designed to empower PreK–12 educators through hands-on technology integration, curriculum alignment, and professional development. At its core is an equipment lending library offering everything from small kits for 45–60-minute lessons to large industrial equipment, all tailored to multiple topic areas across grade bands.
https://seagrant.umn.edu/watershed-game
The Watershed Game (WSG) Team is composed of educators from across the country who are experienced and seasoned WSG trainers and who helped develop one or more of the WSG Models (e.g., stream, river, lake, coast). The WSG Team is led by Minnesota Sea Grant and includes partners at the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management, and Ohio Sea Grant.
Since 2002, TIES has committed to providing all students access to authentic, applied STEM education and the opportunities for a meaningful future that accompany it. Building collaborative partnerships with educators, funders, community organizations, businesses and government agencies allows us to co-create meaningful STEM learning experiences for all learners.
https://cfans.umn.edu/youthoutreach
The College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) at the University of Minnesota connects science, sustainability, and society, offering world-class education and research in food, agriculture, and the environment.
BBE and SSM degrees bring together science, engineering, business and technology to prepare students to solve real-world problems. Our graduates enter the workforce with an understanding of the interconnected systems that impact everything from renewable energy to food security and environmental protection so they can advance and engineer a more sustainable future.
https://sites.google.com/umn.edu/go4brains/home
Go4Brains is a week-long program offered by the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota geared for 9th, 10th, and 11th grade high school students that have faced barriers to access science and medicine related opportunities. The program provides increased awareness of careers in neuroscience, provides students with engaging neuroscience learning activities, basic career and experimental skills, and establishes mentoring connections with faculty and students for long-term support.
Discover how Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Minnesota transforms data, systems, and technology into smarter, more efficient solutions for real-world challenges. With cutting-edge research, industry partnerships, and a strong focus on optimization and analytics, students will be prepared to lead innovation across diverse sectors; from healthcare to manufacturing
The Voyageurs Classroom Initiative builds lasting connections to Voyageurs National Park in the next generation, sparking an interest in outdoor play, environmental science, stewardship, and the history and culture of what is now Voyageurs National Park.
Wolf Ridge is a private, non-profit Outdoor School that provides environmental education programs to all ages. Wolf Ridge's Teacher Training Institute aims to provide educators and administrators throughout the state with professional development in outdoor and environmental education.