Our Interface of Science and Society research investigates how the enterprises of science as a cultural institution intersects with other sectors and institutions of society, and how scientific institutions and individual STEM professionals engage the public.

The Center's current Interface of Science and Society projects are listed below. You can also read about our completed Interface of Science and Society projects.

Revealing Progress toward Promotion and Tenure Reform in the Academy

This project is led by Julie Risien in collaboration with Researcher Holly Cho and aims to learn from study of local processes and lived experiences of change in higher education reward and advancement practices.

STEM Ambassadors Program (STEMAP) (2019 - 2022)

On-the-Spot Assessment to Improve Scientist Engagement with the Public (OTS) (2018-2023)

 

Revealing Progress toward Promotion and Tenure Reform in the Academy (2018-2020)

Funded by the Kavli Foundation, Center researchers Julie Risien, Holly Cho, and Brianna Keys are conducting this research in collaboration with several partners including the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the American Association of Universities, and the Association of Public and Landgrant Universities.  Researchers are working to uncover and broadly share examples that demonstrate the department-scale pr

Research and Development on Understanding STEM Identity Using Live Experiences (2017-2020)

In collaboration with the Pratt Institute and Guerilla Science, the Center's Martin Storksdieck, Kari O'Connell, and Brianna Keys are exploring how audiences with little or no affinity for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) can become more engaged with STEM ideas through live, immersive experiences.

GLOBE: Citizen Science Needs Assessment (2016-2018)

Led by Dr. Heather Fischer and Dr. Martin Storksdieck, OSU’s STEM Research Center will conduct a needs assessment that will inform the expansion of the NASA GLOBE program to citizen scientists outside the K-12 arena. More specifically, we will identify needs of key audiences and assess how well an envisioned program expansion will likely meet those needs. The purpose of the project is project development, not research.