8th Annual Advanced STEM Winter Program Expands Format, Draws Record Attendance
The Global Teaching Project’s 8th annual Advanced STEM Winter Instructional Program again provided students taking Advanced Placement science courses through GTP in rural Mississippi high schools an opportunity to learn from extraordinary teachers and tutors from around the country in a residential, university-based program.
This year’s Winter Program, held from January 11-18th, featured an expanded format and drew well over 200 participants, a record.
Most of GTP’s work is done throughout the year in the dozens of schools GTP serves, where students take AP STEM courses as part of their regular academic schedule.
In addition, a few times each year, GTP students from around the state gather for additional immersive instruction. The Advanced STEM Winter Program is held annually in the days leading up to the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday to emphasize the nexus between Civil Rights and educational opportunity.
Each year, the Winter Program features sessions held over several days at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, the State Capitol, the Old State Capitol, and Jackson State University. Students tour museums and historical sites, and hear from distinguished speakers from academia and political leaders from both sides of the aisle, but the primary focus is always on substantive instruction in AP STEM subject matter on the Jackson State campus.
The 2026 Winter Program also expanded the format from prior years with several new components:
- GTP conducted an auxiliary instructional program in Meridian for students who were unable to attend the Jackson sessions.
- GTP staff worked directly with students at participating schools in the week leading up to the Jackson sessions.
- GTP kicked off the Jackson session with a dinner for Winter Program faculty, speakers, staff, and guests, including Jackson State Interim President Dr. Denise Gregory, JSU Interim Provost Preselfannie McDaniels, and Yale Assistant Provost Dr. Lakia Scott.
The Winter Program was led by a remarkable group of educators, including a recent National Science Foundation honoree who was recognized as the top science teacher in the state, the author of the nation’s most widely used college Biology textbooks, and other distinguished supervising instructors.
Over two dozen classroom teachers from participating high schools also joined their students to assist in, and learn from, the instructional sessions led by supervising instructors. Students also were supported by experienced GTP tutors—STEM majors and recent graduates from leading universities in Mississippi and around the country, including Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Yale, Georgia Tech, the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, and elsewhere.
Although the Winter Program is not mandatory for the over 750 students in GTP’s Advanced STEM Access Program, this year’s program had over 200 participants, as well as a substantial waitlist. The fact that so many students sought to spend a holiday weekend studying AP Biology, AP Physics, AP Computer Science, and AP Statistics is testament to the need for our program, and the drive of our students.
We are proud of our students, who come from many of Mississippi’s most impoverished communities, yet include some of the highest achieving AP STEM students in the state. They have proven they have the aptitude and work ethic needed to help create a bright future for the communities we serve.
View the full gallery from our Advanced STEM Winter Instructional Program
