A new program offers STEM education to hospitalized learners.
Kyan Feser
Staff Writer
News
Winthrop is partnering with Atrium Health’s “The Pearl,” Charlotte’s first-ever innovation district, according to a press release distributed on Feb. 12. The partnership will provide science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education for K-12 hospitalized students at Levine Children’s Hospital (LCH).
“Winthrop is recognized as a leader in educator preparation, and this partnership reflects the innovative and caring environment we cultivate for our future teachers,” Winthrop president Edward Serna said.
Winthrop’s involvement with The Pearl is spearheaded by April Mustain, professor of special education and director of special education programs at the university. The collaboration allows Winthrop Teaching Fellows (a select group of future educators) to experience real-world, non-traditional learning settings alongside their coursework, while simultaneously benefiting patients at LCH, she explained.
“Our first 13 Winthrop fellows of this inaugural initiative have recently completed their Children’s Hospital orientation, and the first small groups will begin their sessions at Levine Children’s Hospital at the end of this week,” she said, referencing the current week. “Weekly visits will continue until the end of the semester.”
Mustain’s passion for hospitalized learning stems from experience, as her eldest daughter was diagnosed with D.R.E.S.S. syndrome in 2014.
“She isn’t a pediatric patient anymore, but she is my reason for this work. I watched her feel disconnected due to learning and social disruptions caused by her many hospitalizations,” she explained.
Winthrop students will support students one-on-one in their hospital rooms, alongside various classroom spaces at LCH, Mustain said. Additionally, students can broadcast learning opportunities from the Ryan Seacrest Recording Studio (a local studio inside the hospital), teach in the Infusion Room during extensive treatments and instruct outside at the newly installed rooftop garden, she added.
“I see this collaboration growing in depth and breadth by offering the opportunity to more education students and education-related fields such as Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS), Social Work, Counseling, and more,” Mustain said. “The Pearl is also so much bigger than our initiative, and I see connections to applied health and biological sciences, AI, and so much more.”
Mustian invited Winthrop Provost Sebastian van Delden to tour the facilities, hoping to “plant the seeds of possibilities for so much more opportunity for Winthrop faculty, staff, and students.”
Despite these plans for growth, Mustain said one logistical challenge remains: the geographical distance between Winthrop and LCH. However, a system involving “chunks” of time has allowed students to schedule beforehand, she explained.
“I think scheduling will always present a unique challenge each semester, but I really like figuring out puzzles, and that’s the way I approach this task.”
Going forward, Mustain encourages those interested to email her at mustiana@winthrop.edu.
“Many chronically ill kids don’t ‘look’ sick every single day, but the impacts of their illness on their physical and cognitive aptitudes, well, it needs to be better understood by teachers. What better way to do that than to prepare [teachers] in an authentic hospital setting before they ever walk into their own classrooms?”
