STEM Saturday Provides Glimpse of New Facility

The first-ever STEM Saturday will give nearly 200 K-12 students and parents from across Wyoming the opportunity to participate in three hands-on activities in the new Michael B. Enzi STEM Facility.

The event will run from 9:15 a.m. to 1:05 p.m.  The event was originally scheduled to run later in the day, but a change in the start time of the UW men’s basketball game against Boise State resulted in STEM Saturday starting earlier.

Children who attend STEM Saturday can get into the game for free and their parents can purchase tickets at a discount.

Here’s the revised schedule:

• 9:15-10:15 a.m. Check in, breakfast and STEM Resource Fair, Wyoming Union Ballroom.
• 10:15-10:45 a.m. Welcome/start, Wyoming Union.
• 10:45-11:25 a.m. Hands-on STEM activity.
• 11:35 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Hands-on STEM activity.
• 12:25-1:05 p.m. Hands-on STEM activity.
• 2 p.m. UW-Boise State men’s basketball game, Arena-Auditorium.

“The idea with STEM Saturday is to give K-12 students an opportunity to explore what STEM is about and have some fun discovering some science,” says Bryan Shader, UW special assistant to the vice president for research and economic development.

Hands-on sessions will include Fashion to Medicine: Using Code to Change the World; Become a Bubbleologist: A Make-and-Take with the Williams Conservatory; Stable Isotope Facility; Wyoming Geology Museum; Lactation in Mammals: UDDERLY COOL!; Engineering Robotics Lab; Harry C. Vaughan Planetarium; and CAVE: 3D Shell Visualization Center.

The STEM-related workshops will include some hands-on or interactive component, and will be led by UW faculty, staff and students.  There will be 12-15 students per group, and parents are welcome to attend.

STEM Saturday is sponsored by the College of Engineering and Applied Science, and the Department of Athletics.