UW-Stevens Point: UWSP hosts STEM Career Day for high school students

University Relations and Communications, 715-346-3046, Fax 715-346-2042, http://www.uwsp.edu/news

Junior high and high school students from around central and northern Wisconsin will be introduced to a variety of careers and paths of study as they gather at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point on Friday, November 5.

The ninth through twelfth-grade students will take part in STEM Career Day, offered for the second year in a row to show students the many fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Teachers may send up to 50 students per school, not including chaperones.

This one-day, science-filled conference provides three one-hour workshops and a morning keynote presented by Mick Veum, a UWSP professor and interim chair of the department of physics. He will present, “Finding Connections, Appreciating Differences and Figuring Out What’s Important.” Registration begins at 8 a.m. and the morning keynote will begin at 9 a.m. The conference runs until 2:15 p.m.

Presentations by faculty and staff members, and STEM professionals will cover topics such as chemical reactions and UV light, mathematical relationships applied to predator and prey species, the science behind designing a better french fry, GIS mapping, using trigonometry to grow trees, forensic science and medical detection, the prehistoric and insect collections in the natural history museum and the creation of an alternative to the internal combustion engine.

In addition to the conference, a workshop for adults working with students in STEM fields will be offered three times during the day. Presented by Van Walling, P.E., executive director of Engineers & Scientists of Milwaukee, highlights of the workshop will include how to get more students into the STEM pipeline, how to advance competencies in STEM, how to improve the diversity of students pursuing a STEM education and how to recruit high school students to serve as STEM ambassadors to grades K-8.

STEM Career Day is sponsored by the UWSP Continuing Education program. Registration is only available online at http://www.uwsp.edu/conted/stem and is $30 per student or adult chaperone. A listing of workshop descriptions and complete program schedule is available at the conference website.

For more information, contact Continuing Education at 800-898-9472 or go to http://www.uwsp.edu/conted.