Elements of Success

PEPPER HILL, founder of the Rocky Point-based business Science Alliance of Eastern NC, was always curious about how the world, both natural and human-made, works. She is fascinated by complex things like how the human brain functions and sillier things like how a Slinky will close in midair before it falls. “Years ago, I realized I was an intelligent adult with a college degree but did not really understand many of these things. To me, it was just words on a page,” she says.

Science did not come naturally for Hill. She had a love for history and writing and took the bare-minimum science requirements in high school and college. She obtained her degree in criminal justice and history with a Grades 9-12 Social Studies Education Certification from the University of North Carolina Wilmington. “I thought I was headed into a social studies classroom but stumbled upon a teaching job at a museum of history and science,” she says.

Hill taught there for fifteen years where she discovered that science is, in fact, for everyone. “I fell in love with science,” she says. Over time she recognized that there were potential museum visitors who had difficulty visiting science centers and museums or did not prioritize science experiences. 

“I began dreaming about Science Alliance around 2016, developed a business plan in 2020, and officially launched the business on my mom’s birthday, April 29, 2021,” Hill says. Her mission was to reach underserved students and families.

Investing her own savings and tons of sweat equity, Hill has grown her program from solo teacher the first year delivering nineteen programs in three school districts to five educators and an administrative specialist serving 30,000 students in twenty-eight North Carolina counties last year. “I am proud of how I have pioneered a new way to make science more available for everyone,” she says.

Science Alliance offers a range of programs that spark curiosity, encourage exploration, and boost confidence even in the non-scientific student. School Programs, targeted to pre-K through fifth grade, are closely linked to the North Carolina Essential Standards for Science and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s Science and Engineering Practices. Topics include weather, forces and motion, the human body, rocks, electricity and magnetism, astronomy, dinosaurs, and ecosystems. 

“Because of my love of history, one of my favorite programs is Ancient Engineers,” Hill says. “Students examine local artifacts and explore many modern tools – and toys – that were invented or discovered right here in Eastern North Carolina.”

The program Little Explorers engages pre-K learners with science through play, sensory observations, and social interaction, while Just for Fun is based on Hill’s decades of informal teaching experience and is intended to engage learners of all ages and abilities through what she calls “lightbulb moments,” or discovering something for the first time. “Nothing compares to the first time you lift your teacher with a lever, make a rocket soar through the air, or find a magnetic rock,” Hill says. “Providing lightbulb moments for kids who do not have access to informal science opportunities is the most rewarding, fun thing I’ve ever done.”

Hill also organizes Family STEM Nights, which attract hundreds of kids and parents with themes like Mystery at My School. “When the whole family is excited and confident about science, we cultivate an environment that inspires the next generation of brilliant thinkers and achievers,” she says.

Science Alliance offers complimentary programs at libraries and parks and participates annually in the North Carolina Science Festival. Hill also presents professional development workshops at UNCW, the North Carolina Science Teachers Association conference, and schools around the state.

“The common thread in all of the programs is ensuring that everyone has access to fun, meaningful science experiences,” Hill says. She often sings and dances to help students remember tough concepts. “I can jump rope and pogo stick at the same time,” she says proudly.

Hill is on the executive board of the North Carolina Science Leadership Association, a member of the National Science Education Leadership Association, STEM Southeast North Carolina Learning Ecosystem, the North Carolina Science Teachers Association, the Franklin Institute’s Leap into Science Initiative, and a voting North Carolina delegate to the National Science Teaching Association. For almost twenty years, she has served at the regional and state levels as a Science Olympiad and the Science and Engineering Fair judge. She is the current president-elect of the NCSLA Fellows Program, where she is also chair of the Informal Science Committee. Hill recently received the Bob Cutter Award for her years of service to the North Carolina Southeast Regional Science Olympiad.

“I am humbled and honored to receive any award for science. It reminds twelve-year-old me that I deserve a seat at this table,” Hill says. “My success is in making people of all ages from all backgrounds feel confident and inspired to explore their world from the microscopy to the stars.”

To view more of photographer Aris Harding’s work, go to arisharding.com.

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