TITLE:
Employing Learning Centers to Retain Intellectual Assets for Marginalized Communities
AUTHORS:
Jennifer Fleming
KEYWORDS:
Pandemics, Education, STEM, Learning Centers, Disability
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.12 No.11,
November
28,
2024
ABSTRACT: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the challenges and limitations of marginalized communities worldwide. This theoretical study focuses on identifying the trends in STEM education to develop a standard of learning centers to help small communities stop the perpetual losses in intellectual assets as their scholars migrate to other countries for higher education opportunities. The article uses a mixed methods approach to reveal the root cause of the absence of STEM circles in these environments and identify potential solutions to improve educational outcomes that support greater independence and economic stability. The literary review introduces the fundamental principles and skill sets needed within these marginalized communities’ workforce to support the development of tools and techniques to avert the issues experienced in past pandemics like COVID-19. Four different case studies were conducted in North America, South America, Eurasia, and Africa to assess educational readiness and strategies for improving preparedness in science and technology. The research concludes with recommendations for developing international learning communities as a tool for resolving the loss of valuable intellectual property in foreign-born scholars that migrate to other geographies for advanced study by reintegrating them into their respective countries in periodic intervals to design, direct, and manage the dispersion of knowledge toward a more sustainable environment.