The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) organized its first large-scale K-12 outreach event, titled “Stevens STARTS” on Sunday, April 8, 2018. STARTS, which stands for Stimulate, Teach, And Reveal Technology and Science, brought together members of 25 Stevens organizations and members of the Hoboken community. The event took place in the Babbio Center from 1 to 4 p.m., starting in Babbio Atrium and taking over the first three floors with tables and engaging science lessons for the kids.
The event took over five months for the STARTS committee to plan and was a collaboration between members of SWE and Alpha Phi Omega (APO). SWE’s K-12 Outreach Co-Chair Sarah Bertussi first thought of the idea last semester. SWE runs an outreach event every semester, typically geared towards Girl Scouts, but they wanted to create a larger “inter-organizational STEM outreach event that would benefit students in Hoboken and surrounding communities regardless of age or gender,” according to Bertussi.
Different student organizations were at tables in Babbio in a presentation similar to a science fair. Some of the topics included DIY water filters, building boats, water pressure games, brain teasers, music and technology, building with legos, magnetism, resources in STEM, Borax, and many more.
“We wanted to do the event in the fall, but it required more time than we expected,” explained committee member Ameya Ivaturi. The committee met every Tuesday night until the event and hopes to hold the event again. The event would not have been successful without support from the brothers of APO, Dean Kristie Damell, Senior Project Manager Ruani Ribe, the Stevens Police Department, University Events, and Dean Kenneth Nilsen.
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