NEW ORLEANS — Educational nonprofit Be Loud Studios has earned a $5,000 STEM Action Grant from the Society for Science. The New Orleans-based group is one of 45 funding recipients nationwide selected for “exemplary contributions to society, community and science.”
Be Loud, which is a second-year grantee, said its goal is “amplify kid confidence through radio and digital media production, encouraging them to not only be consumers and listeners, but also creators.” The nonprofit teaches kids how to write, record and mix their own radio segments, with most scripts focused on personal identity and exploration. Last year’s funding supported Be Loud on the Road, an eight-episode series that featured students investigating and reporting on issues in their local communities. In 2022, $5,000 will support Be Loud Live, a “Saturday morning learning experience that helps the program’s young DJs draw inspiration from the city’s beautiful and complicated culture to produce content that comes from a stronger place of doing, knowing, seeing and making.”
“Society for Science through the STEM Action Grants Program has been simply amazing,” said a Be Loud spokesperson. “Their support … will allow us to have new experiences and report around our city, as students draw inspiration from and further understand the beautiful, complicated culture of New Orleans.”
In total this year, the society is granting $176,000 in grants, including four special Presidential Awards. The program works toward developing an inclusive STEM talent pool by strengthening and improving outcomes for groups that have been historically left behind in STEM education and careers, including Black and Latinx individuals, Native Americans, women and gender-expansive persons, persons with disabilities as well as low-income students from rural and urban areas.
The Presidential Awards totaling $10,000 will be given to four emeriti STEM Action Grantees: Black Girls Dive, Electric Girls, Kul Wicasa Wopasi (Lower Brule) and Safe Alternative Foundation for Education (SAFE).
Society for Science works to promote the understanding and appreciation of science and the vital role it plays in human advancement. Established in 1921, it is best known for its award-winning journalism through Science News and Science News Explores, its science research competitions for students — including the Regeneron Science Talent Search, the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, and the Broadcom MASTERS — and its outreach and equity programming that seeks to ensure that all students have an opportunity to pursue a career in STEM.
