Science Days: Graduate Student Run Outreach on a Budget

We will describe a new and ongoing program at the University at Buffalo (UB) aimed at exposing underrepresented K-12 students to the Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) fields. This program has been an entirely graduate student run effort, from idea to inception and finally through implementation. Graduate students, under supervision from faculty members, received a grant from NYSS-APS and matching funds from Physics, Chemistry, and Biology departments at UB. Graduate students set up an outreach program that buses students from inner city Buffalo to UB campus to participate in STEM-based activities. We have held two three hour events so far. Each event involved ~30 students, 99% of which are from underrepresented demographics. Their responses to brief questionnaires showed overwhelming positive views of the event and their genuine interest in science. We will discuss what has made this program a success including what faculty members have done and can do, to support the effort while still leaving it entirely in the graduate students' hands.

This project is funded by NYSS-APS- Graduate Science Days Award # 62313, The University at Buffalo/Buffalo Public School Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Partnership Award # DUE-1102998