DETROIT, MI (BDPA Detroit) — Mr. Keith Young, the founder and CEO of Ecotek Lab and an active member of BDPA, has been nominated for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) for his work with youth in STEM research and education.
Ecotek Lab was established in 2005 at Techtown-Detroit and has since expanded its lab programs to communities in Metro Detroit, Philadelphia, Orlando, Baltimore, and Houston.
Cover photo (top) — National BDPA’s Detroit Chapter staff with local High School Computer Competition (HSCC) team finalists during BDPACON14. ©2014 BDPA
The PAESMEM is designed to recognize those who have made significant contributions to growing the U.S. science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce. The National Science Foundation (NSF) administers the awards program on behalf of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
Mr. Young was a recipient of the Techtown Salute Award in 2022. He is a graduate of the Harvard Executive Leadership Best Practices Program. He has nearly 30 years of experience in working with student scientists from diverse backgrounds as well as helping senior level decision makers in the business and education communities grow and maintain the K-20 STEM pipeline.
Keith Young uses his network of science innovation laboratories and partnerships with parents, school leaders, corporations and workforce development organizations to help student scientists in under-resourced communities find their passion in STEM. He has developed a unique approach called STEM21 that blends independent learning, indepth research methods, complex reading/writing, boundless curiosity, and hands-on work in a lab environment. Students are admitted into Ecotek Lab starting in the third grade.
— Photo ©2020 BDPA Detroit.
Mr. Young believes that fostering a robust culture for STEM learning is just as important as having an award-winning science curriculum or a certified science teacher in the classroom. He launched Ecotek Lab in 2005 at Techtown-Detroit and has since expanded the lab program to communities in Metro Detroit, Philadelphia, Orlando, Baltimore, and Houston. His four favorite sayings are: “Appreciate the education-to-economics process”, “Fall forward in life”, “Your network is linked to your net worth”, and “Success is built off of doing the small things well”.
Ecotek Lab has served as a gateway for hundreds of student scientists from diverse backgrounds to gain access to the benefits of having a STEM education, such as participating in STEM competitions; presenting their research at national conferences; meeting with world leaders at the United Nations to discuss global topics in science; earning skill-based certifications in technology; applying for patents; launching for-profit companies; earning scholarships to pursue degrees in STEM; and securing jobs at STEM-focused companies.
— Sources and photos: BDPA, BDPA Detroit, Ecotek Lab
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