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Innovation in Philanthropy winner

11/12/20

By Vince Brennan, Managing Editor, St. Louis Business Journal

In one experiment, students learned to identify and visualize their own DNA.

For another, they studied the importance of water filtration and even built custom filters to apply their knowledge. And one more helped students discover the power of fragrances and taught them the science behind smells and their applications.

Those are just a few of the experiments put on by local life science company MilliporeSigma through its partnership with KIPP St. Louis charter schools and its Curiosity Labs program.

The skills-based program enlists MilliporeSigma employees as volunteers that bring hands-on, inquiry-based science experiments to area students to build STEM skills and prepare them for secondary education and careers.

Millipore’s Head of Sustainability and Social Business Innovation and Branding Jeffrey Whitford said the program was founded to improve high-quality education access for students in underserved school districts. Locally, KIPP St. Louis schools have been the primary benefactor of the program.

“We started with one school and about 200 kids, now we’re in six schools and about 2,200 kids,” he said. “And the program is working. We’re outperforming in some educational outcomes and even exceeding some of the top performing schools in the state.”

The partnership began in 2012 and featured employees volunteering their time to educate students, completed infrastructure improvements to middle school science labs and added enhanced curriculum — created in concert with Washington University — with new sources and materials.

Since the start of the partnership, Millipore has invested more than $650,000 in the program in hopes of inspiring the next generation of scientific leaders, Whitford said.

In addition to the Curiosity Labs program, Millipore constructed a mobile science lab out of a retrofitted shipping containers called the Curiosity Cube. There is one cube that travels the country and another permanently based in St. Louis. Both teach a variety of science curriculum — think lessons with 3D printers, bacteria studies and more — in a setting that can be transported around town.

The labs and the cubes are vital parts of the educational program for Millipore. But like many schools and teachers around the country, Covid-19 has forced changes to lesson plans.

Millipore executives responded by creating a variety of do-it-yourself experiments — modeled after internet cooking videos — that show students and parents how to complete lessons using common household products. The online component of the program includes worksheets and other materials that can help parents track progress and keep children on task.

“The MilliporeSigma partnership with KIPP St. Louis has helped bring science to life at our schools,” said KIPP St. Louis Executive Director Kelly Garrett. “From hands-on science experiments led by MilliporeSigma scientists to access and exposure to scientists of all backgrounds, our students have had their curiosity heightened about science as a daily pursuit. We have seen the magic of phosphorescence broken down into a chemical reaction and learned about careers that can solve some of the world's most challenging problems.”

Eighth graders that were advanced or proficient at math have shown a 357% improvement over St. Louis Public Schools peers, officials said. In addition, KIPP students have shown a 3.3 point average improvement on ACT scores each year.

Deborah Slagle, Millipore’s senior vice president of the company’s biologics technology cluster, said the program wouldn’t be possible without the buy-in from employees. The company has 500 volunteers that have donated more than 86,000 hours since the beginning of the partnership.

“We’ve built up that expectation as part of our culture,” Slagle said.

In the future, Millipore hopes to expand the program to more underserved schools and rural areas, but not without addressing some access problems in doing so.

“Maybe we could expand the model with new technology and better access to the internet,” Whitford said. “We could then beam in virtually so the lab doesn’t have to be in our backyard.”

Photo credit: Dilip Vishwanat, SLBJ