LSC-Tomball Science First Success Center

Grand Opening 2025

Architectural rendering of the coming Sci Fi Center space. Brightly lit inviting large room with comfortable areas to collaborate, learn, and recharge.

Opening Spring 2024, the Sci Fi Center will be a STEM-focused academic support hub/space for all students who are interested in pursuing an education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The Sci Fi Center team can assist you in your pursuit of a successful STEM career. At the Center, you will find community, access to computers, comfortable places to study, peer support specialists, and academic support programs. More grand opening details coming soon.

Meet the Sci Fi Center Team.

Please complete a short survey and tell us what kind of programing you would like to see.

SURVEY

What is STEM?

STEM is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Because they share many similarities, they are connected areas of study. They are individually defined as:

Science: The systematic study of the nature and behavior of the material and physical universe, based on observation, experiment, and measurement, and the formulation of laws to describe these facts in general terms (Science, 2012).
Technology: The branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society, and the environment, drawing upon such subjects as industrial arts, engineering, applied science, and pure science (Technology, 2012).
Engineering: The art or science of making practical application of the knowledge of pure sciences, as physics or chemistry, as in the construction of engines, bridges, buildings, mines, ships, and chemical plants (Engineering, 2012).
Mathematics: A group of related sciences, including algebra, geometry, and calculus, concerned with the study of number, quantity, shape, and space and their interrelationships by using a specialized notation (Mathematics, 2012).
Meet your LSC-Tomball math professors here.
$LSC-Tomball Math Professors$

Why STEM?

Engineers, technology specialists, scientists and mathematicians are in high demand. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects an 8% increase in the number of STEM jobs from 2019 to 2029. That’s significantly higher than the 3.7% average growth for all occupations over the same period. A degree focused on one or more areas of STEM can help you find an engaging role in a growing employment area.

That said, there is still a large talent gap when it comes to STEM careers. Each year, there are 1.3 million new openings in STEM fields at the bachelor’s degree level. However, there are fewer than 600,000 new graduates to fill those job vacancies. Furthermore, data provided by the 2013 US Census Bureau showed that Black and Hispanic populations were underrepresented in STEM fields, each making up less than 10% of the STEM workforce.

In supporting the nation’s goal of increasing the number of students obtaining STEM degrees, the Department of Education awarded LSC-Tomball a $2.8 million Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) STEM and Articulation Program grant in the fall of 2021 to create the Science First Success Center (Sci Fi Center or SFC).

The Sci Fi Center Team


Minara Karim Project Director	Mindy Coleman Dean, Division I	Dr. Irene Briggs Coordinator III

Lizbeth Bgarza Instructional Designer II	Robin Webb Communications Coordinator	Christine Bradford Principal Investigator/Professor, Geology