Fellowship Projects

Industry-Based Learning Experiences for Educators

The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership at NC State, and its partners, provide industry-based learning experiences for K-12 public and charter school teachers in North Carolina.

Kenan Fellows spend three weeks during the summer with a mentor in an applied research or industry setting. Partner organizations define the criteria for each fellowship project and set the parameters for the internship based on their industry, organizational values, and what they hope teachers will gain from the experience to share with students.

The application period for the 2024-25 fellowship year is closed. The projects listed below are confirmed for the 2024-25 fellowship year. Projects for the 2025-26 fellowship year will posted later this spring.

How to search for fellowship projects

  • Fellowship projects are open to K-12 educators across all disciplines.
  • Fellowship projects are searchable by district/county, location, or subject area.
  • Learn about the fellowship experience

General Application

  • If you do not see a fellowship in your county, you have the option to submit a general application. If an opportunity in your district arises during this application cycle, your application will be considered for the fellowship in your district or county.
  • If no opportunities arise during this application cycle, we will retain your completed application for two years. This will allow us to consider it for any future opportunities that may become available in your district.
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BelleJAR Foundation: Galvanizing the Community with Nucor Steel

The BelleJAR Foundation is supporting a Kenan Fellow to work in northeastern North Carolina. The selected educator will partner with Nucor Steel, the largest steel producer in the United States and the largest recycler of scrap metal in North America. They will then use the experience to advance workforce development and STEM knowledge in their community.

Districts:  Camden, Currituck, Gates, Hertford, Pasquotank, Perquimans
Location: Cofield
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Biogen Foundation: Addressing Health Equity Through Food Security

THREE FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE

The Biogen Foundation has a history of prioritizing investments in health equity in underserved communities. In the 2024-25 fellowship year, they are sponsoring three fellowships centered on health equity to bring further focus to this issue in North Carolina communities. The selected teachers will address health equity, along with Kenan Fellows Program partners, the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP), North Carolina Plant Sciences Initiatives, and North Carolina Coastal Federation, in their corresponding regions. They will learn about local food access and how food security impacts health outcomes in their communities.  They will create a product centered around supporting their communities and students by incorporating these statewide perspectives from their experiences.

Districts:  AshevilleCitySchools, Buncombe, Carteret, CHCS, Chatham, Craven, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Haywood, Henderson, Johnston, Jones, Lee, Madison, McDowell, Nash, Person, Polk, Onslow, Orange, Rutherford, Transylvania, Vance, Wake, Warren, Wilson, Yance
Location: Statewide
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Burroughs Wellcome Fund: Providing Perspectives for Pre-Service Teachers

THREE FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
Thanks to support from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. Teaching Fellows programs to develop workshops for pre-service STEM and Special Education teachers. The elected Kenan Fellows will use their expertise to create professional development with a focus on highly effective teaching strategies, classroom culture, and inclusion and belonging strategies. N.C. A&T University, Fayetteville State University, and N.C. State University’s Teaching Fellows programs will be hosting the selected Fellows locally, and one of the three weeks of the summer internship will include an immersion with our partners at the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the Dudley Flood Center.  Graduates of any N.C. Teaching Fellows program who live and work in the communities surrounding those universities are encouraged to apply.   

Districts:  Alamance, Bladen, Caswell, Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Chatham, Cumberland, Davidson, Durham, Forsyth, Franklin, Granville, Guilford, Harnett, Hoke, Johnston, Lee, Nash, Orange, Randolph, Rockingham, Sampson, Stokes, Robeson, Wake, Wilson
Location: Various
Grades: K-12
Content: STEM, Exceptional Education

Creating a Culture of Creativity and Problem Solving with NC State’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE

NC State Innovation and Entrepreneurship aims to foster a culture of creativity and problem-solving among its students, faculty, and community. Partnering with K12 educators through the Kenan Fellows Program can extend this vision by providing mentorship, resources, and real-world experiences, empowering educators to impart these skills early on, while preparing their students for future success in innovation-driven fields. Collaborating with the Kenan Fellows Program enables NC State Innovation and Entrepreneurship to bridge the university’s resources and K12 education, nurturing a pipeline of forward-thinking minds and fostering a robust ecosystem of innovation.

Districts:  Alamance, Chapel-Hill/Carrboro, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Nash, Vance, Wake, Wilson
Location: Raleigh
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Dogwood Health Trust Western NC Fellowship

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
The Dogwood Health Trust is once again generously supporting a fellowship in Western North Carolina. The selected teacher will spend three weeks working with Biltmore Farms, which works to cultivate community through local and regional initiatives centered on the health of the region and celebrating the beauty of the natural spaces. Indigenous and Latinx educators are encouraged to apply.

Districts:  Avery, AshevilleCitySchools, Buncombe, Burke, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, QuallaBoundary, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Yancey
Location: WNC
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Expanding the STEM Pipeline; The Sky’s the Limit

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE

This is an opportunity for one fellow to soar to new heights as part of a collaborative team of the country’s leading military aviation sustainment experts at the U.S. Navy’s Fleet Readiness Center (FRC) East. Located aboard Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, FRC East provides world-class aviation maintenance, engineering, and logistics support by leveraging a highly skilled technical workforce drawn from a mostly rural population in Eastern North Carolina. The selected fellow will experience first-hand how North Carolina’s largest maintenance, repair, and overhaul provider supports Naval Aviation assets. They will inform the organization’s efforts to foster a culture of STEM-focused students and educators throughout the region and drive the development of curriculum resources for expanding the local STEM pipeline that will inspire the skilled workforce of the future. Then, they will share their fresh knowledge and invigorating experiences with students by utilizing these compelling classroom lessons that align with state and national standards.

FRC East is the U.S. Dept of Navy’s primary aviation rework facility for helicopters, vertical lift, and tiltrotor aircraft and components. It’s not surprising that the mammoth facility is also the largest industrial employer east of Interstate 95 in North Carolina ─ creating the region’s largest population cluster of degreed engineers and scientists.

Districts:  Carteret, Craven, Jones, Onslow, Pamlico
Location: Cherry Point MCAS
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Feeding the Future with Nutrien

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
Nutrien’s purpose starts with the soil beneath our feet and the global challenge of feeding nearly 10 billion people by the year 2050. The selected Kenan Fellow will immerse themselves in Nutrien’s corporate culture and see how it cultivates solutions for growers so they can increase food production sustainably for generations to come. You will help Nutrien engage and empower students as it aims to make key transformations through ambitious commitments that drive systemic change and lead the next wave of agriculture’s evolution.

Districts:  Beaufort, Washington, Hyde, Pitt, Craven, Pamlico, Martin, Bertie, Dare
Location: Aurora
Grades: K-12
Content: All

Genetics and Genomics Academy: A New Approach to Genetics Education

TWO FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE

The Genetics and Genomics Academy (GGA) at N.C. State University leverages collaborations across life science research and training to enhance our understanding of genetic and genomics underpinnings of life on earth, sustain biodiversity, and enhance social equity. The academy is committed to enabling North Carolina residents of all ages to become more informed about these topics. GGA is sponsoring two fellowships centered on its research to address the teaching of genetics and genomics that decrease racial and gender bias among students. Educators of color with a science background and interest in genetics are strongly encouraged to apply.

Districts:  CHCS, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Nash, Orange, Person, Vance, Wake, Warren, Wilson
Location: Raleigh
Grades: 9-12
Content: Science, Biology, Environmental, Genetics

Meta Western NC Fellowships

TWO FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
Meta is once again generously supporting two fellowships in Western NC. Conserving Carolina and SAWS will serve as the mentor organization for the three-week summer internship. Details below.

Conserving Carolina is a non-profit, regional land trust with a mission to protect, restore, and inspire appreciation of the natural world. We work with area landowners in Transylvania, Henderson, and Polk Counties (and the periphery of these counties) to protect the land, such as open space, farms, forests, and waterways. By protecting these places, we are protecting habitat for the plants and animals that are important to the natural heritage of western NC and we’re helping to keep the water in our region clean. Conserving Carolina staff will work with Fellows to provide training and skills development activities in addition to direct outdoor service to members of our AmeriCorps Summer of Service program. This program is designed to help build confidence, trust, teamwork, environmental and service-oriented ethics, and introduce participants to educational and career paths they may not have otherwise considered.

Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards (SAWS) is a conservation non-profit dedicated to providing stewardship to protected public lands in the Southern Appalachian region, including in Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Kentucky. This fellowship will explore the world of Wilderness stewardship including the Wilderness Act of 1964, the benefits of time outside, and how to bring wilderness/nature education back to the classroom (and bring your classes outside). You’ll learn about the characteristics of wilderness under the Wilderness Act of 1964 and how it protects natural spaces for the next generation. We will spend some time outside connecting to your local park, trail, and/or wilderness areas – there’s no better way to learn about the benefits of nature than to get outside!

Districts:  Polk, Henderson, Rutherford, McDowell, Cleveland
Location: TBD
Grades: K-12
Content: All

NC Farm Bureau Federation and Sampson County Farm Bureau: North Carolina Turkeys

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
The North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation Kenan Fellow will learn all about turkey production in Sampson County. North Carolina is the second-largest producer of turkeys in the U.S. The state produced 1.2 billion pounds of turkey in 2018. The selected educator will partner with experts in the turkey industry and Ag in the Classroom to create the content for an AgMag about turkey production which can be distributed digitally and in print using previous North Carolina Ag Mags as models.

Districts:  Sampson
Location: Sampson County
Grades: K-8
Content: All

NCDPI: Computational Thinking

FIVE FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with the N.C. Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) and the #IamCS movement to advance STEM education and build an NC-based ecosystem of teacher leaders that will support career and workforce development in the computer science fields. Five Kenan Fellows will be selected from any subject area and grade level to highlight cross-curricular opportunities in Computational Thinking/Computer Science (CT/CS). Along with the traditional fellowship experience, the three-week internship will include customized professional development in CT/CS as well as two weeks of immersion with a local industry partner to see where connections can be made for students in the Northeastern and Western areas of the state.

Districts:  Alexander, Beaufort, Bertie, Buncombe, Camden, Cherokee, Chowan, Clay, Currituck, Dare, Edenton, Edgecombe, Gates, Graham, Halifax, Haywood, Henderson, Hertford, Hyde, Jackson, Macon, Martin, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Pitt, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Tyrrell, Washington
Location: Various
Grades: K-12
Content: All

North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives and Four County Electric Membership Corporation: EmPowering Education

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
Get energized by working alongside mentors and industry experts with North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives and Four County Electric Membership Corporation. Explore the electric cooperative business model and see how electricity is distributed throughout the region. You will have an opportunity to explore the various cooperative business operations and work alongside those who build and support the electric infrastructure that powers our homes and businesses. Use your experience to create electrifying lessons that will help students understand where electricity comes from and how their local co-op is building the grid of the future and increase their awareness of the various career pathways in the energy sector.

Districts:  Bladen, Duplin, Pender, Sampson
Location: Burgaw
Grades: K-12
Content: Math, Science, STEM, CTE

Sowing the Seeds of Sustainability with Kidzu Museum

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE

Kidzu Children’s Museum in Chapel Hill, NC is an educational interactive museum dedicated to inspiring young children and adults in their lives to learn through creative, purposeful play. The selected Fellow will work with Kidzu to the museum update and revise its learning framework to guide expansion efforts and/or assist with programming around serving underserved populations, including immigrant and refugee families.The museum is currently in the planning stages to grow its scope and footprint, expanding its reach to be accessible to children and families across the state as it develops (and conserves, with funding from the NC Land and Water Fund) a new 45-acre early learning campus.

Districts:  Alamance, CHCS, Chatham, Durham, Granville, Orange, Person, Wake
Location: ChapelHill
Grades: K-12
Content: EC, Earth, Environmental, Biology, STEM

STEPs4GROWTH: Central NC

TWO FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. A&T State University’s STEPs4GROWTH clean energy workforce initiative to develop curriculum and experiences for K-12 students. Two educators from central NC will be selected for fellowships hosted by the N.C. Business Committee for Education (NCBCE) or the N.C. Taskforce for Offshore Wind Economic Resource Strategies (NC Towers).

Districts:  Alamance, Chapel-Hill/Carrboro, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Nash, Vance, Wake, Wilson
Location: Raleigh
Grades: K-12
Content: CTE, STEM, EC

STEPs4GROWTH: Charlotte Region

TWO FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. A&T State University’s STEPs4GROWTH clean energy workforce initiative to develop curriculum and experiences for K-12 students. Two educators from the Charlotte region will be selected for fellowships hosted by Bosch Rexroth or Siemens Energy.

Districts:  Anson, Cabarrus, Catawba, CMS, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Rowan, Stanly, Union
Location: Charlotte
Grades: K-12
Content: All

STEPs4GROWTH: Eastern NC

TWO FELLOWSHIPS AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. A&T State University’s STEPs4GROWTH clean energy workforce initiative to develop curriculum and experiences for K-12 students. Two educators from this region will be selected for fellowships hosted by The Volt Center at Craven County Community College.  

Districts:  Beaufort, Carteret, Craven, Greene, Lenoir, Onslow, Pamlico, Pitt, Wayne
Location: NewBern
Grades: K-12
Content: All

STEPs4GROWTH: Northeastern NC

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. A&T State University’s STEPs4GROWTH clean energy workforce initiative to develop curriculum and experiences for K-12 students. One educator will be selected from Eastern NC for a fellowship hosted by The Center for Energy Education.

Districts:  Bertie, Edgecombe, Franklin, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Northampton, Vance, Warren
Location: RoanokeRapids
Grades: K-12
Content: All

STEPs4GROWTH: Sandhills Region

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is partnering with N.C. A&T State University’s STEPs4GROWTH clean energy workforce initiative to develop curriculum and experiences for K-12 students. One educator from the Sandhills region will be selected for a fellowship hosted by Blue Ridge Power.

Districts:  Bladen, Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Johnston, Lee, Moore, Robeson, Sampson
Location: Fayetteville
Grades: K-12
Content: All

UNC Department of Biology: Cells and More Cells

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE
Partner with Dr. Amy Maddox and her team of researchers at the UNC-Chapel Hill Department of Biology to understand how cells undergo the step-by-step process of division. You will be introduced to high-resolution microscopy and various analysis techniques as you observe cell division in a laboratory model animal (the tiny nematode C. elegans) and measure aspects of the process including size, speed, packing and the shape and texture of cellular features. Use this experience to inform your instruction as you make the every day, critical and rarely thought about process of cell division relevant, understandable and accessible for students.

Districts:  Alamance, CHCCS, Chatham, Durham, Granville, Orange, Person, Wake
Location: ChapelHill
Grades: K-12
Content: Math, Science, Statistics, Computer Technology, STEM

UNC Department of Cell Biology and Physiology: Memories and Fruit Flies

ONE FELLOWSHIP AVAILABLE

Join Dr. Toshihide Hige and his team at UNC-Chapel Hill to see how the fruit fly brain responds to external sensory stimuli and how the response changes as new memories are formed.  Learn how they manipulate neuronal activity using light, and how they record electrical activity and calcium signals with these tiny brains.

Districts:  Alamance, CHCCS, Chatham, Durham, Granville, Lee, Orange, Person, Wake
Location: ChapelHill
Grades: K-12
Content: STEM, Science, Math, Statistics, CTE, Computers, Technology