The School for Science and Math
at Vanderbilt
A Part-time Selective STEM Program for Highly
Talented High School Students
Angela Eeds, Ph. D.
Director, SSMV
Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach
Program Overview
• The SSMV, started in 2007, is a partnership
with Metro Nashville Public Schools
• Students (grades 9-12) come to the
Vanderbilt campus 1 day/week for a
research-based curriculum
• PhD scientists are fulltime instructors, with
approximately 50 graduate students,
postdoctoral fellows and faculty volunteers
per year
• 26 students are accepted each year out of
~130 8th grade applicants
• Students are selected for admission based
on grades, standardized test scores, teacher
recommendations, written essays, and
interviews
Class of 2013 Graduates meet with
Senator Lamar Alexander
The curriculum includes field-based studies
such as at Mammoth Cave
How to ask a
good question
Curriculum
Honors Courses
Grade
9
Taking a hands-on approach to explore
questions through interactions with
research scientists in various fields
10
Implementing group research projects
to investigate scientific questions
11
Carrying out an internship with a
Vanderbilt research laboratory and
Investigating various implications and
outputs of scientific research
12
Communicating research outcomes
to both the scientific and global public
though national science competitions
and community-based research projects
Interdisciplinary Science I
Research I
Interdisciplinary Science II
Research II
Interdisciplinary Science
III
Asking the next
question
Research III
Advanced Research
Curriculum Focus
Program Goals
The goals of the SSMV are to graduate
students who are:
Sequencing a gene
in endangered
plants
• Highly skilled in STEM (science, technology,
engineering, & math) disciplines;
• Capable of solving complex problems,
independently and within groups;
• Successful in research competitions at local,
regional, national, and international levels;
• Versed in communicating and utilizing
research for community projects;
• Successful at top tier colleges/universities
and pursuing STEM related careers;
• Prepared for leadership roles in the scientific,
education, and business communities.
Juniors and seniors work in a campus
research laboratory
Student Profile: Graduating Classes of 2011-2017
30
21 % URM
74 M / 85 F
25
20
Asian
Hispanic
Black
White
15
10
5
0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Student Achievements
• 16 Siemens competition semifinalists and 2
regional finalists
• 16 Intel Science Talent Search semifinalists
• 3rd place in the Siemens We Can Change the
World Challenge
• 62 student publications in Young Scientist
• 17 total recognitions and three grand prize
winners at the Middle TN Science & Engineering
Fair
• 3 first place and 15 second place projects (57
students) at the Tennessee Junior Academy of
Science annual meeting
• 10 student co-authorships on research
publications (Nature Photonics, J Heredity, J
Electrochemical Society, Laboratory
Investigations, J Mechanical Behavior
Biomedical Materials, J Virology)
College Matriculation: Comparison to MNPS Academic
Magnet High Schools
70
% of Students
60
SSMV
Academic Magnet HS
50
40
30
20
10
0
Top 50 Colleges/Univ TN Public
Bowdoin College
Brown University
Bryn Mawr College
Centre College
College of William & Mary
Columbia University
Dartmouth College
Davidson College
Duke University
Emory University
Georgia Tech
Haverford College
Middlebury College
MIT
Princeton University
Stanford University
Tufts University
Univ of Chicago
Univ of Illinois
Univ of Michigan
Univ of Pennsylvania
Univ of Rochester
Univ of Wisconsin
Vanderbilt University
Wake Forest University
Washington Univ
Wellesley College
West Point
Williams College
Yale University
Alumni Profile:
Isaiah, SSMV Class of 2011
“To me, the best thing about the SSMV is
its ability to mold a student's mind around
every aspect of science while managing to
make every individual's experience unique.
The SSMV teaches me how to ask a
scientific question and conduct scientific
research, however the possibilities are
endless when it comes to science. Society
will never run out of questions, and the
SSMV provides students with a
fundamental toolkit to reach any answer.”
Bowdoin College
Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship
Major: Earth & Oceanographic Science
Minor: Chemistry
Alumni Profile:
Busra, SSMV Class of 2013
“SSMV is a phenomenal program that has
allowed me to grow tremendously
throughout the past four years. I love being
in an intellectually stimulating environment
with other people that share a passion for
science. It has provided me with the
remarkable opportunity to conduct
research as a high school student. The
research experience has been lifechanging, opening my eyes to the vast
array of opportunities and encouraging me
to continue research in the future.”
University of Pennsylvania
QuestBridge College Match Finalist
Thank You
Extracting Caffeine
from tea
Virginia Shepherd, Ph. D.
Professor, Vanderbilt Univ
Director, CSO
Examining a brain
Presenting a scientific poster
Dissecting a bolus
Perspectives Forum on Einstein