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Club Members Share and Inspire at Science Fairs

published on Tuesday, July 7, 2009

The McCormick Science Club celebrates following a
successful quarter.

The spring 2009 session of Science Club, a mentorship program initiated by the Center for Genetic Medicine, ended with successful science fairs at both partner institutions, the McCormick Boys & Girls Club of Chicago and the Barreto Union League Boys & Girls Club. At each fair, club members demonstrated what they’d learned throughout the quarter, sharing their enthusiasm for science with friends and family.

Members of the Barreto Club celebrated the completion of their first quarter in the program by offering a glimpse at basic chemistry experiments, including a pH tie-dye demo and baking soda/vinegar lava flows. At McCormick, club members took their peers on a tour of the digestive system, starting with taste and smell and ending with intestinal absorption.The highlight for many was the frog dissection station, where members revealed the digestive tract to wide-eyed spectators.

Club co-founders Michael Kennedy, chief of staff for the Feinberg School’s Office of the Dean, and Carolyn Jahn, associate professor of cell and molecular biology, hope the enthusiasm surrounding the fairs will bring new members to the club. They plan to spend their summer with Northwestern faculty and other education professionals developing curriculum for the coming year.

Science Club was started by Kennedy and Jahn in the spring of 2008 to engage middle school students in science through fun, hands-on activities led by real scientists-in-training. Each quarter-long session explores a common theme, culminating in an opportunity for members to present their work.

Northwestern staff and graduate students serve as mentors in the program, guiding students through the weekly activities. Spring volunteers include Miranda Bernhardt, Kate Blizinsky, Rebecca Daugherty, Dominic Fullenkamp, Julianne Hatfield, Robert Heuermann, Lisa Hurley, Unmesh Jadhav, Alan Lewis, Julia MacKenzie, Melissa Mendez, Laura Moore, Stephanie Rangel, Athena Samaras, Jessica Schulte, Jenna Schuster, Amy Sebeson and Maggie Walker.

To learn more about Science Club or to find out how to get involved, please click here.