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MORGANTON CAMPUS
About the Mentorship Program
About the Mentorship Program
The Mentorship Program is a 40+ year tradition and is recognized for its unique collaboration with over 200 volunteer mentors per year that provide project-based opportunities for students. The program is designed for students with little or no previous experience and relies on NCSSM instructors to provide the support and instruction necessary for high school students to navigate the experience with confidence, professionalism, and self-reliance.
A key to the student experience is the engagement in a project under the guidance of a professional partnering with NCSSM Mentorship Programs. NCSSM Morganton partners include research and problem-based experience with industry partners and community partners, as well as nationally recognized certification programs (i.e., EMT, FAA drone flight).
The Mentorship course curriculum is extensively research-focused. The range of topics and fields of interest widely vary within research (STEM, social sciences and humanities). Students develop skills such as how to read publications/literature, keep records of their daily activities, and demonstrate their learning and the impact of their work through presentations and written communication to a variety of audiences from experts in the field to the community at NCSSM (i.e. a 10-minute oral presentation, a poster presentation, and/or an elevator pitch and mini-grant proposal).
ENGAGE WITH THE NCSSM MORGANTON MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
HAVE QUESTIONS?
Contact the Morganton Mentorship Team
Contact the Morganton Mentorship Team
MORGANTON CAMPUS
Christiane Burkins
Christiane Burkins
christiane.burkins@ncssm.edu
Christiane Burkins is the Director of Mentorship and Research for our Morganton campus. Before joining NCSSM in March 2024, she served as Internship and Partnership Coordinator at the Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology in Lawrenceville, Georgia. At the Gwinnett School, she managed a year-long, STEM-based internship program for 250+ seniors and also coordinated a quarterly STEM speaker series which hosted professionals from academia and industry. Prior to becoming an educator, Christiane held various director positions in communications, marketing and human resources. She earned her bachelor’s in English from Presbyterian College, and her Master of Arts in Teaching from Georgia State University. In her spare time, Christiane studies and writes about food anthropology, and enjoys cooking, hiking, reading, and spending time with her family and dogs.
MORGANTON CAMPUS
Collyn Gaffney
Collyn Gaffney
Collyn Gaffney joined the NCSSM-Morganton team in June 2022 as an Instructor of Mentorship and Research. She began her teaching career in 2006 in Boise, Idaho. Aside from teaching core courses of history, math, and ELA, Collyn has enjoyed teaching Big History Project, morphology, improv, and coaching First Lego League, Science Olympiad, and Fishing Team. Prior to her 16 years in the classroom, she spent 13+ years in the radio, TV, and film industry in both North Carolina and Idaho. Collyn enjoys being on the NCSSM team and exploring western North Carolina. Her daughter is a NCSSM Class of 2013 alum.
IN THE NEWS
Stories of Mentorship at NCSSM
Stories of Mentorship at NCSSM
Explore how mentorship connects NCSSM students with research beyond the classroom.
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