According to the U.S. Department of Education, jobs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics—STEM fields—are set to outpace growth in other job areas, yet only 16 percent of American high school seniors are proficient in mathematics and interested in STEM careers. The University of Wyoming is doing its part to change that with a plethora of outreach programs and summer camps to engage K–12 children in STEM learning.
“If you get students engaged in hands-on activities and talk about career possibilities and the exciting things that are going on at UW, it can really excite and inspire them,” says Shawna McBride, associate director of the Wyoming NASA Space Grant program. “If you don’t start early, then you lose a lot of students, especially women.”
UW’s STEM outreach efforts for elementary, middle school and high school students include summer programs such as AstroCamp, Wyoming Energy Camp, Energy Summer Institute, Engineering Summer Program, Summer Research Apprentice Program, Wyoming Area Health Education Center Health Careers Summer Camp, Dinosaur Academy, Summer High School Institute and The Artful Craft of Science; lending materials such as Wyoming NASA Space Grant trunks, In-A-Box Science and Health Kits, Wyoming EPSCoR Teaching Toolboxes and StarLab; inclassroom experiences, including the EE Nanotechnology program, Exploring Engineering and outreach by engineering societies; and campus-based programs, such as the Laramie Robotics Club, the annual Women in Science conference, and visits to the Berry Biodiversity Conservation Center, Geological Museum, Shell 3-D Visualization Center and Harry C. Vaughan Planetarium.
“Through outreach programs on campus, there are more than 4,000 students touched by STEM outreach each year,” McBride says.
To learn more, visit uwyo.edu/wystem.
