2023 Science Outreach Volunteer Newsletter

In this month's newsletter:

Welcome

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Ask a Scientist at the Grange Fair - Call for Volunteers!

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Science-U Memories

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Haunted-U - Call for Volunteers!

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Outreach Staff Updates

Welcome to our Volunteer Newsletter!

With the summer coming to an end, the Office of Science Outreach is wrapping up seven weeks of Science-U camps and starting to plan for our fall events. On August 25, we will be going to the Centre County Grange Fair to help Penn State faculty, staff, and students share their research with the fair attendees. We are also starting to plan for our Halloween-themed Haunted-U to be held on September 30. Read below for more details and sign up to join us for one or both of these events!

Also, check out some photo memories from Science-U 2023! We are thankful for our awesome summer staff members who did an excellent job sharing science with our campers! We hope to see them at other outreach events throughout the year! Speaking of staff, we have exciting new updates in the Office of Science Outreach to share as well.

Our volunteer newsletter will be sent about once a month. If something interests you, or you have ideas, please reach out to us at outreach@science.psu.edu.

The annual Ask a Scientist event at the Centre County Grange Fair will be held on Friday, August 25 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. TIckets to the fair and parking are provided. This is a very low-key and fun event where kids and adults come to visit Penn State scientists at the Rec Building! Attendees look forward to doing hands-on activities, seeing demonstrations, and having casual conversations about various research topics.

For more information please email Carol-Beth Book at cab962@psu.edu. To sign-up for a limited spot, please complete the survey link below by August 16. We hope to see several of you there!

Sign-up for Ask a Scientist

Enjoy a few photos from past years!

Photo of a table at Ask A Scientist where a Penn State researcher explains corals to young visitors.

Photo of a scientist talking iwth children at the Ask a Scientist event.

A canine demonstration at Ask a Scientist 2022.

It was a busy summer for the Science-U team! Staff training was followed by seven weeks of 14 different science camps! Over 300 campers ranging in age from 6 to 18 took part in the various themed camps that introduced them to topics such as astrobiology, ecology, DNA, anatomy, physics, materials science, robotics, and more! Check out a few photos below to see a glimpse of the fun and discovery that happened on campus and around University Park!

Science-U camper with his bottle rocket.

Science-U campers at a local stream study.

Science-U campers watching ice cream being made.

Science-U camper showing off DNA model made with candies.

Science-U campers showing the lego robotic they built.

So thankful for our wonderful summer staff! There wouldn't have been such a successful Science-U without them!

Groupd photo of all Science-U staff members.

Photo from Haunted-U 2022 with space alien and kids holding props.

Plans for Haunted-U are underway! This is a fun and educational event where families and kids of all ages come to campus to experience science with a Halloween twist! Some examples of past activities include pumpkin painting with UV lights, strawberry DNA extraction, forensic science activities, chemistry and physics demonstrations, and much more!

The date is Saturday, September 30 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. If your group or organization is interested in participating, please complete the sign up survey below, or contact Josh Krupa at jpk6434@psu.edu. We are looking forward to this "spooky" science event!

Sign-up Survey for Haunted-U

New Staff in the Office of Science Outreach

Our office welcomed two new employees this summer! Shauni Collins started as our new Administrative Assistant in mid-May. She replaces Carol-Beth Book who recently moved to the role of Education Program Specialist. In July, Josh Krupa, a former science teacher and summer program assistant, joined our team as a Education Program Specialist. He replaces Caitlin Teti who is now our new Director. We are excited to have a full team back in the office!

Shauni Collins

Josh Krupa

Photo of six staff members of the Office of Science Outreach.

Our Office of Science Outreach staff members are happy to assist you with any questions related to Science Outreach. Bookmark our website at https://science.psu.edu/outreach for more information or email us at outreach@science.psu.edu.

We'd love to hear from you!

By submitting photographs or information to the Office of Science Outreach, we reserve the right to use them in our future newsletters or marketing.