Students will bring robotics activities to families at IHS

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
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Posted: Dec 6, 2010

To engage some 100 children and their families at the Institute for Human Services in math and science activities, students from UH Mānoa will host “Be A Scientist Tonight” at the homeless facility on Friday, December 10, from 6:30-8:30 p.m.  The event will offer hands-on activities such as robotics, fly genetics, origami and other activities created by members of the Student Teaching Outreach Mentoring Program (STOMP) at the campus.
 
The outreach program was initiated by Mathematics Associate Professor Monique Chyba, who leads Mānoa undergraduate and graduate students teaching in local public elementary and middle schools. The program gives students in grades K-12 direct hands-on learning activities to delve into the world of autonomous robotics, through the use of Lego educational Mindstorm kits and corresponding Robolab software.
 
The partnership involves faculty and staff in the Mathematics Department, Office of Student Equity Excellence and Diversity (SEED), and Graduate Professional Access (GPA) program.  Together, they have supported six students for the past year to work in the public schools with enrichment activities that boost interest in math and science. 
 
Chyba notes that the IHS experience has been transformative for the STOMP students. “You can see in their faces, how it has made a big difference in their lives,” she says. “The Fall semester has been a proving ground that our students want to engage in our communities, and that they can make a difference.”
 
SEED is particularly involved in increasing the number of students from underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering and math fields. It strongly encourages students to participate and engage in social activism—striving to create awareness among the next generation of students that inequities exist, and that some distinct social stratifications marginalize certain groups.     
 
Contact Chyba at (808) 956-8464 or at chyba@hawaii.edu .