STEM was the last box Kevin Rodriguez would have checked on a career assessment. Science seemed linked to yawning. In Rodriguez’s high school biology class, handouts replaced hands-on experiments. It wasn’t until five years after high school that Rodriguez changed his thinking. The epiphany came from the unlikeliest place: a TV series. Stunning visual aids in “The Cosmos: A Spacetime...

Normally composed, Keyla Ramirez felt excitement bursting inside her. She had made it into a new year-long research program in Puerto Rico that would start immediately after she finished her bachelor’s degree. The only problem: How would she break the news to her parents? She could already hear their questions: “Aren’t there opportunities like that here? Why Puerto Rico?” Home is...