On Tuesday, November 26th, Mountain View High School will host its second annual science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) day, a day devoted to promoting youth involvement in these fields. This year, STEM Day will feature speakers from companies and universities such as NASA, Foothill College, San Jose State University and Stanford University, as well as a MVHS alumni who now works for the California Air Resources Board. There will be a wide variety of topics covered, ranging from the controversies in nutrition to the physics of film animation, in hopes that all students will benefit from the presentations.
This full-day event took lots of hard work and planning from a small group of dedicated committee members including parents, community members, and MVHS staff.
One committee member is Ly Nguyen, the AP Computer Science and Robotics teacher at MVHS.
“The purpose of STEM Day is to promote science, technology, engineering and math. We hope to get students to be inspired to take those types of classes, and then also to possibly pursue careers in related fields. I think its great for students to be able to listen to speakers that are successful in the industry and hear them present what they’ve done and all the interesting things that they’ve been working on.” said Nguyen.
Another committee member, Tracy Weatherby, is a parent volunteer that was involved in last year’s STEM day, and is helping to plan this year’s STEM day as well.
“This is really just meant to give students some perspective and show them what they can do with these different degrees and what can happen if they pursue them a little more.” said Weatherby.
In addition to the speakers during first through sixth period, STEM Day will also include lunchtime activities in the quad. During this time, students can learn to program in under 10 minutes, courtesy of the Computer Science Club, or watch the MVHS robotics team demonstrate their latest project. There will also be demonstrations by the MVHS Science Olympiad Club, General Dynamics, American Chemical Society, and the SJSU Chemistry Club (that may include balloons and insulation!). These lunchtime activities are designed to be hands-on, and will give every student a chance to participate in real-life applications of science, technology, engineering and math.
This opportunity only happens once a year, so the committee encourages students to talk to their teachers about attending the presentation. Students with free periods are also encouraged to come. There will be one speaker per period, first through sixth periods only, as well as hands-on demonstrations in the quad at lunch. Visit the link below for more information on this year’s STEM Day and the speaker schedule: