The key to a healthy lifestyle is exercise. The key to a healthy planet is preserving the environment. The key to a healthy future is education. Narragansett Boat Club (NBC) and Brown Crew have partnered to unite these themes in providing a program for middle school students in the Providence area who have not typically had the opportunity to engage in rowing. STEM fields and rowing programs have historically excluded students from underserved communities.

NBC and Brown Crew have partnered with STEM to Stern to eliminate barriers to participation in rowing and STEM education. Many students from underserved communities face barriers including lack of transportation and swimming competency as well as cost and underrepresentation. STEM to Stern addresses these barriers through local and national partnerships to ensure that all students are able to participate on rowing teams, regardless of race, socioeconomic status or address. STEM to Stern enables rowing clubs to be more inclusive, competitive and accessible to everyone and uses rowing to unite students from different communities.

A sense of teamwork and commitment is unsurpassed when a group of individuals work together towards a common goal and everyone has an equal share in pulling for the rest of the team. This philosophy is at the core of rowing, and students in the NBC/Brown STEM to Stern program work together as a team to learn how to row. They are also educated in a broad sweep of STEM fields that underlie the sport of rowing, such as exercise physiology, physics and wetlands ecology. In partnership with Brown Crew, we are excited to have this program at NBC, where both summer and afterschool programs benefit from the participation of both Brown student-athletes and members of the NBC community.

Established in 1838, the Narragansett Boat Club is the oldest rowing club in the United States. NBC has a long history of introducing countless people from the greater Providence community to the sport of rowing and has produced some of the finest athletes at all levels of competition. A kilometer down the river, Marston Boathouse is home to Brown Crew. Two of the university’s most successful sports, men’s crew and women’s crew, have been a presence on the Seekonk river alongside NBC since 1868. Brown Crew is proud to be an organization at the forefront of performance and promotion of the sport of rowing, with a commitment to increasing access and opportunity in the sport to all youth.

The goal of STEM to Stern is to remove barriers and to bring students together. Through this program and its partnership with Brown Crew, NBC becomes a stronger, more inclusive club that serves and represents our entire community.

STEM to Stern programming is continuing throughout the year, with fall rowing and STEM afterschool sessions. Winter sessions will be include fitness and STEM, and we will be back on the water with rowing and STEM in April 2022.

For more information, please contact us.

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