Science Genius initiative: Community-Based STEM Identity Formation

This year marked the revitalization of the Science Genius Initiative, bringing science education directly into community spaces through the cultural framework of hip-hop.

By conducting workshops across Brooklyn, Queens, and Harlem, we witnessed students transform scientific concepts into powerful rhymes grounded in physics, biology, and chemistry.

Now in its second decade and firmly established at the Gordon Institute, the Science Genius Initiative continues to demonstrate remarkable outcomes: increased science engagement, improved academic performance, and validated youth identity.

This initiative proves that STEM education, when taught through the lens of lived experience and community cultural wealth, becomes a liberating force rather than an alienating one.

Science Genius offers a sustainable, community-centered model for STEM education that other institutions can adapt to their specific contexts — showing how cultural responsiveness leads to deeper learning and
community transformation.