STEM Awareness Week inspires students

Innovation and inspiration go hand in hand. A big part of Lind-Ritzville High School’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Club is innovation, the club presented their inaugural STEM Awareness Week to inspire students from Tuesday, Feb. 16, through Friday, Feb.19.

The object of spreading awareness among high school students is rooted in the field’s potential.

STEM Club advisor Jason Aldrich explained, “All the data shows that the number of STEM jobs is increasing faster than all other types so it makes sense to me to bring that to the attention of students.”

“Plus,” he added, “STEM is really cool.”

To spread awareness about the potential of STEM, club members presented a series of science demonstrations for Lind-Ritzville Middle School students in an assembly on Wednesday and for LRHS students at lunch on Thursday.

Demonstrations for the middle school included “Elephant’s toothpaste”, “Burn, Gummy Bear, Burn”, “Fireworks in a Balloon”, “Fire in a Flask”, and a “Sublimation Demonstration” (a pressurized dry ice explosion). A condensed version of the demonstrations was presented to LRHS.

Aldrich cites the middle school assembly as the most successful part of STEM Awareness Week.

He explained, “It was a great combination of engagement strategies and I think the kids really enjoyed it.

“Now, whether it puts them on a path towards STEM, we’ll have to wait and see. But hopefully it confirmed some hopes and dreams and opened the minds of some others. That’s all we can shoot for.”

Seven STEM Club members helped to coordinate demonstrations at the assembly: Morgan Lane, Abby Gering, MicKayla Hall, Emily Rosen, Emma Aldrich, Hawk Busyok and Megan Buriak.

They, too, believe the assembly was successful.

STEM Club member Morgan Lane said, “My favorite part of STEM week was the reaction of all of the kids’ faces <at the assembly>… I liked it because we opened a new view on what science is.”

Megan Buriak added, “My favorite part was the dry ice explosion. It was really fun to do and the kids got really excited about it. They were nervous, waiting in anticipation for it to go off, and when it did, they wanted to see it again.”

“My favorite part of STEM Week,” Emily Rosen said, “was the science experiments <and> presentations because not only were we inspiring kids to enjoy science, but we were learning things we didn’t know either.”

Plans are already being arranged for next year’s STEM Awareness Week.

Aldrich explained, “For next year I’d like the club to do something with the grade school. Plus, we need to get the word out better to the high school as to what STEM and STEM Club could do for them.”

It is clear STEM Club is helping the students already involved.

Regarding her favorite aspect of STEM Club, Lane said, “I love the fact that I get to learn more about science, how it works in the world, and how I can use it to change the world.”

“My favorite part about STEM club is everything we do with it,” Buriak said. “I love the trips, the learning overall, and having a great time with people that are interested in the same thing as me.”

Rosen said, “My favorite part of being in STEM is the learning opportunity. Being involved in STEM has helped teach me problem solving skills, teamwork, to not be afraid to try new things, and to never give up.”

In its first year, STEM Awareness Week achieved its goals: to allow current STEM Club members to express their passion for the field and to inspire other students to pursue its potential.

Aldrich said, “Once kids see what could be instead of what they believe the way things <are>, they become empowered and excited. The kids in STEM club are somewhere on the continuum of this path but all share a passion for all things science and engineering. So it seemed natural to try to share that passion and maybe hopefully pass it on to someone new.”

“It’s called a teachable moment,” he concluded, “It’s a pretty cool thing.”