FAQs for Students, Parents and Mentors

These are experiences that encourage active learning and critical thinking through investigation.

Students must meet the following eligibility requirements to apply:

• Must live within the state of North Carolina
• Must be a current 10th or 11th grader (Note: Students will participate in the program in the summer as rising 11th or 12th graders).

Students should apply to INSPIRE if they enjoy STEM classes and would like a chance to go deeper into exploring the myriad of STEM pathways and careers one can pursue. 

For step-by-step instructions on how to apply, please click here. 

All INSPIRE participants will receive a certificate of completion.

There are no general coursework requirements for INSPIRE. However, individual inquiry and/or research experiences may have some prerequisite knowledge and skills needed in order to successfully participate. Of particular importance is the student’s interest in STEM, as indicated by courses taken in school, prior experiences and a strong recommendation from a guidance counselor and a teacher. 

The experiences will vary from year to year based on which mentors decide to participate in the program and what experiences the mentors are working on.

Upon acceptance into the program, students will be asked to list their placement preferences. Students will then be placed based on their placement preferences and the availability of space and mentors. 

The program is one week long.

Students accepted into the program must commit to full participation for the duration of the one-week program. Students who cannot commit to full participation are not eligible to participate in the program.     

There is no fee to apply, and there is no fee to participate in the program. 

Students work with their mentors from Monday through Thursday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, with a one-hour lunch break from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm. On Friday, students will present their inquiry and/or research experiences to their families, mentors, and the NCSSM-Morganton community. Outside of working with mentors, students will also participate in enrichment activities, such as sessions and workshops on leadership competencies, team-building, self-advocacy, communication skills, networking, and many other opportunities.

Although participants are welcome to bring their own laptops, please note that each participant will be issued a loaner laptop at check-in. Participants are encouraged to use these laptops for appropriate academic purposes.

No, it cannot. INSPIRE is only one week in duration, and this is too short a time for a student to complete sufficient work for a regional, state, or national contest.

Participants dine cost-free at the school cafeteria. Special dietary needs can be accommodated and must be communicated in the parent comment and medical form.

While participating in an inquiry and/or research experience, your child will be supervised by his/her mentor. Outside of working with a mentor, your child will be supervised by adult resident advisors. All individuals supervising your child are required to undergo a background check and complete training prior to the start of the program.

All participants are required to live on campus during the one-week residential program. The schedule for INSPIRE includes daytime and evening activities.

Two students share each dorm room.

NCSSM follows CDC and UNC System guidelines for preventing the spread of COVID-19. For more details on school policies, please see the detailed Pandemic Response Plan.

These are experiences that encourage active learning and critical thinking through investigation.

To increase the overall participation, engagement, and diversity of North Carolina students participating in STEM research and other high-impact, real-world learning opportunities.

The program specific goals are:

·       To introduce students to research in STEM-related fields and/or team-based problem-solving experiences.

·       To encourage students to pursue STEM pathways.

·       To establish and strengthen students’ network of STEM relationships.

·       To assist students in cultivating their leadership skills and competencies.

Students work with their mentors at the mentor’s site location from Monday through Thursday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, with a one hour lunch break from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm. On Friday, students will present their inquiry and/or research experiences to their families, mentors, and the NCSSM-Morganton community. Outside of working with mentors, students will also participate in enrichment activities, such as sessions and workshops on leadership competencies, team-building, self-advocacy, communication skills, networking, and many other opportunities.

NCSSM will provide the transportation to get students to and from your site location.

At a minimum, all mentors are required to undergo a background check and to complete the Protection of Minors training. 

The primary mentor interacting with the student and all additional mentors who will interact with the student without the primary mentor present should meet the compliance requirements.

• Provide safety training (if applicable) and a safe environment for the INSPIRE students.
• Offer direction and support to the INSPIRE students.
• Ensure that INSPIRE students are supervised during the entire time that they are at the mentor site.
• Communicate with INSPIRE staff about any issues or support needed.
• Help to prepare the INSPIRE students for the end-of-the week presentation where they will be presenting on what they worked on.

The American Psychological Association’s Psych Learning Curve (Where Psychology and Education Connect) has put together a questionnaire. Completing this questionnaire can serve as one way to determine whether you are ready to become a mentor.

     Questionnaire:

1.  Are you willing to invest time and energy in a mentoring relationship?

2. Do you feel mentoring is a valuable form of development?

3.  Are you open to learning from a mentee?  

4.  Are you open to sharing your expertise and experiences with a mentee?

5.  Are you willing to help a mentee develop and achieve learning objectives?

6.  Are you willing to discuss mistakes and failures as well as successes?

7.  Are you a good listener?  

8.  Are you willing to give candid feedback- positive and negative?

9.  Do you encourage new skills and behaviors?

• If you answered ‘Yes’ to the questions above, you are ready to become a mentor!
• ​If you answered ‘No’ to questions 1, 2, or 3, you might want to support students in other ways. Mentoring may be more appropriate for you when your schedule is more flexible.
• If you answered ‘No’ to questions 4-9, you might find some aspects of mentoring very challenging. If you decide to proceed with mentoring, you will want to remain aware of these items and work closely with your mentee to ensure they do not get in the way of a successful experience.

Some tips for being an effective mentor to high school students (taken from PLOS Computational Biology- Lescak et al, 2019) include:

• Check with your organization’s environmental heath and safety/risk management offices to confirm rules and regulations for working with minors.
• Have reasonable, time-bound expectations and goals for the student’s experience.
• Be realistic and transparent about your expectations for the student and provide positive feedback.
• Set goals early and revisit them often.
• Design a deliverable for the end of the experience.
• Structure the student’s time.
• Help the student see both the big picture and how the experience meshes with those goals.
• Guide the student toward becoming independent in his/her work and taking ownership of his/her experience.
• Show the student you are human and relatable.
• Cultivate a culture of communication.
• Strive to mentor through a culturally competent lens.

If interested in becoming a mentor, email us at inspire@ncssm.edu.