Bridging the STEM Education Gap
Fueled by Failure
Briana H. Clarke has had a long standing goal of making the STEM community more accessible. When she first studied engineering at Seattle Pacific University, Briana saw how steep the learning curve was for a student who is not introduced early on to engineering concepts. Disheartened by her lack of exposure and community, Briana dropped out of C++ during college–twice. However, she was determined to not only better prepare students for a technology driven society, but also be a model of problem solving and perseverance.
After completing her degree in physics, Briana taught herself to code in her first year of teaching. She has continued to build her own repertoire in order to strengthen her impact on students. She infused technology and engineering in her own class, and now holds professional development to impact the broader education community.
Making Science accessible
Briana has taught science in the California Bay Area for the past ten years. Starting with a materials budget of $4 per student, she started creating virtual labs for her students, using digital resources such as PhET.
Her desire to make STEM accessible for her own students broadened to creating resources for students across the country. She has since published 100 physics, chemistry, and math labs, which have been used in over 700 classes since the pandemic.
Briana has continued to impact STEM education through community engagement. Outside of the classroom, Briana has served as a trustee for the Knowles Teacher Initiative. She has also served as Physics Education Technology’s Equity and Professional Development Specialist (as pictured).