More than 30 minority high school students from across the state turned into scientists over the last week at the U.
They built robots, worked in mock crime labs and, most importantly, talked about college.
It was all part of two programs called “Hi-Tech” and “Hi-Gear,” sponsored by the College of Engineering, Intel Corporation and the Michael Company.
Hi-Tech was oriented toward ethnic minority students while Hi-Gear focused on women. The goal of each three-day program was to inform students about college and “to encourage continued interest in math and science,” said Caitlin Whitaker, program coordinator.
College-related discussions were held each day and included information on applying to college, getting financial aid and finding internships.
Although the students came from many different Utah high schools and backgrounds, all were nominated because of their interest in science. Aeiko Navales, who will be a senior at Judge Memorial High School this fall, said, “It’s a good program and a lot of fun.”
For most students, the event’s highlight was launching balloons from trebuchets-close relatives of catapults. The students built the trebuchets and launched them at the Heritage Center, where most of the activities took place.
Students also outfitted themselves in U lab coats and solved fake murder mysteries using educational DNA kits.
Chad Chavez, a senior at Layton High School, said he liked “a lot of the electronic stuff, like the robots. We built circuits-stuff we’d never get to do anywhere else.”
Chavez’s chemistry teacher recommended him for Hi-Tech.
U Engineering students organized the activities and directed the students during the events. They instructed students on how to build robots, which were then raced through an obstacle course. The instructors were interviewed and hired in January, Whitaker said.
The programs ended after several students were awarded with $1,000 scholarships, provided by sponsors.
Jolie Coleman, development officer for the College of Engineering, said the sponsors are “very supportive of programs on campus that have to do with science, math and engineering.”