Welcome to STEM Week!
The Central MA STEM Network Ecosystem is happy to provide you with this menu of options designed to allow you to explore new opportunities and SEE YOURSELF IN STEM!
Find additional events throughout MA at https://massstemweek2020.sched.com
CMSN Ecosystem Series Events
STEM After School Series
Each afternoon, at 3:30 will be a new opportunity for young engineers to discover new passions. From designing and building a rocket to learning about veterinary medicine, there is something that is sure to spark new interests.
Monday – Launch It!
EcoTarium
Tuesday – A Career with Animals
Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University
Wednesday – Prosthetics Engineering
WPI Engineering Ambassadors
Thursday – Ziplines
WPI Engineering Ambassadors
Friday – Packaging Engineering
WPI Engineering Ambassadors
For more information and to register, please see individual descriptions below by date.
STEM Week Career Panel Series
Each day during STEM week, from 12:30 – 1:30, is a new opportunity for your students to hear from a panel of STEM professionals and learn about what led them to their career, their job function, education and more. A different STEM sector will be featured each day and there will always be time for Q&As.
Monday – Health Sciences
Tuesday – IT/Computer Science
Wednesday – Biomedical
Thursday – Manufacturing
Friday – Construction
For more information and to register, please see individual descriptions below by date.
Public Events
Monday, October 19, 2020
MA STEM Week Kick Off Event
Monday, October 19th – 10:00am – 12:00pm
Description: This official third annual STEM Week Kick Off event is co-hosted by the STEM Advisory Council, MIT, and the MA Science and Engineering Fair (MSEF). The virtual event will include live virtual remarks from Governor Baker, Lt. Governor Polito, MIT President L. Rafael Reif, Dr. Jeff Leiden, Secretary Peyser, and MIT Professor Cynthia Breazeal. The second half of the event will kick off with remarks from MSEF Executive Director, Helen Rosenfeld, and follow with a science and engineering fair presentation from MSEF student winners as well as MSEF sponsors and supporters, Bill Sibold, Executive Vice President and Head of Sanofi Genzyme and P.J Boardman, Director of Education Marketing at MathWorks.
Audience: Public event all are welcome
Virtual Manufacturing Day
Monday, October 19th – 7:00am – 5:00pm
Hosted by: MassHire North Central Workforce Board
Description: Make history and take part in the first annual MAKE IT IN MASSACHUSETTS Virtual Manufacturing Day! MassHire Workforce Boards across the state are providing an opportunity for students to experience how STEAM is making manufacturing cutting edge in Massachusetts. This event is supported by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Governor Baker’s office. Both Governor Baker and Secretary Peyser will be providing brief keynotes. Read more.
Event Partners: MassHire North Central, Central, Hampden County, Greater New Bedford, Franklin Hampshire Workforce Boards
Audience: Public event; Elementary School, Families
Worcester State Nature Challenge
Monday, October 19th, 8:00am – Friday, October 23rd, 5:00pm
Hosted by: Worcester State University
Description: Worcester State University Aisiku STEM Center is hosting a BioBlitz.
What is a BioBlitz? A bioblitz is a community citizen-science effort to record as many species within a designated location and time period as possible. Our bioblitz will be open during STEM week 10/19 to 10/23 and we are interested in species located within the New England region.
How do I participate? All you need is a camera and a way to upload your images to iNaturalist. When taking your picture, focus on your object and try not to include a lot of background.
Want to join? Grab your phone or camera, head outside and start taking pictures of the plants, animals and fungi you find! Our project page is called Worcester State Nature Challenge and the link is https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/worcester-state-nature-challenge
Here is a link to using iNaturalist
Audience: Public event; Higher Education, All Grades, Teachers, Families, Adults/Business
STEM Week Career Panel: Health Sciences
Monday, October 19th – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem Members
Description: We invite educators, middle/high/college students, parents and anyone who’d like to learn about STEM careers to register and join us virtually. Join with your class, as a group or on your own to hear from a panel of Health Sciences -related professionals and explore this exciting STEM sector. Hear about what led these individual to their careers, their job function, education and more. We hope to showcase diversity in careers and education and inspire your students to “See Themselves in STEM.”
Panelist Organizations: Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine; MedStar EMS; UMass Medical School
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers, Families
STEM After School: Launch It!
Monday, October 19th – 3:30pm – 4:30pm
Hosted by: EcoTarium
Description: Launch It! Straw Rocket: Anyone can become a rocket scientist or aeronautical engineer! Join the EcoTarium as we help you and your family use engineering, math and physics to design, build and test a rocket prototype using only paper, scissors, tape and a drinking straw (so have those supplies handy)!
Supplies Needed: paper, pencils (crayons or markers), scissors, tape and a drinking straw
Audience: Public event; Elementary School, Families
Tuesday, October 20, 2020
MA STEM Teacher of the Year Award & Mass Mentoring Partnership: A Conversatoin about the Power of STEM Mentoring
Tuesday, October 20th – 10:00am – 11:00am
Description: A Virtual Celebration of STEM Mentoring featuring STEM Teacher of the Year Presentation by the Patriots Hall of Fame and a conversation about the power of STEM Mentoring with Mass Mentoring Partnership, Raytheon, and 2020 Teacher of the Year Award Recipient. Lt. Governor Polito and Mass Mentoring Partnership CEO, Lily Mendez, will lead a discussion on the power of mentoring and necessity of relationships, especially as programming and mentoring has pivoted to a virtual world.
For companies interested in learning more, tune in Tuesday at 10am, and for those interested in signing up as mentors, click this link to learn more
STEM Week Career Panel: IT/Computer Science
Tuesday, October 20th – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem Members
Description: We invite educators, middle/high/college students, parents and anyone who’d like to learn about STEM careers to register and join us virtually. Join with your class, as a group or on your own to hear from a panel of IT/Computer Science-related professionals and explore this exciting STEM sector. Hear about what led these individual to their careers, their job function, education and more. We hope to showcase diversity in careers and education and inspire your students to “See Themselves in STEM.”
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers, Families
STEM After School: A Career with Animals
Tuesday, October 20th – 3:30pm – 5:00pm
Hosted by: Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University
Description: Have you ever considered a career working with animals? This event will introduce you to what the job of a veterinarian specializing in disorders of the stomach and and intestine in dogs and cats looks like and show you some of the tools they use to diagnose and treat these diseases. It will also emphasize the important role veterinary nurses play and even make you realize that some careers that you do not associate with animals (like being an engineer) can influence pet health. Dr Cyndie Webster from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University will lead the presentation.
Audience: Public event; Middle School
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Storybook STEM – A Royal Mess!
Wednesday, October 21st – 10:00am – 10:30am
Hosted by: EcoTarium
Description: How do you dragon-proof a castle? How do you rescue a prince from the tenth story? Can a paper bag become formalwear? Join the EcoTarium for Storybook STEM! Enjoy a reading of the children’s classic The Paper Bag Princess, then build and test solutions to a royal challenge. Building supplies can include cardboard, tape, scissors, paper, recyclables– anything you have around the house– errr– palace!
Audience: Public event; Early Education, Elementary School, Families
Join us on Facebook Live!
STEM Week Career Panel: Biomedical
Wednesday, October 21st – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem Members
Description: We invite educators, middle/high/college students, parents and anyone who’d like to learn about STEM careers to register and join us virtually. Join with your class, as a group or on your own to hear from a panel of Biomedical-related professionals and explore this exciting STEM sector. Hear about what led these individual to their careers, their job function, education and more. We hope to showcase diversity in careers and education and inspire your students to “See Themselves in STEM.”
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers,Families
Virtual STEM Class – Corona Virus…Shoo!
Wednesday, October 21st – 3:00 – 4:00pm
Hosted by: STEM Beginnings LLC
Description: The coronavirus pandemic is affecting everyone, including children. So let’s explore STEM, and learn about ways to keep ourselves safe and well. The hygiene routines that slow the spread of the coronavirus, are the same habits that help keep us healthy all year round! And now we even wear MASKS (just like superheroes do!) to help protect ourselves and others too!
Let’s learn and have fun with our friends, STANLEY & EMILY. Join us for our VIRTUAL STEM CLASS called CORONAVIRUS….SHOO! Together, let’s learn about good hygiene, masks and social distancing.
Audience: Public event; Early Education, Elementary
Program is also offered on Friday 10/23 at 5:00 PM. See event listing under 10/23 to register.
STEM After School – Prosthetics
Wednesday, October 21st – 3:30 – 4:30pm
Hosted by: WPI Engineering Ambassadors
Description: Prosthetics – Engineers apply their knowledge to replace limbs by using technology and materials to provide people with independence, mobility and experiences. Today we will design a prosthetic leg for your favorite stuffed animal!
Supplies you will need: Four-legged stuffed animal; paper cup or cardstock; sponge, cardboard or felt; empty paper towel or toilet paper roll; cotton ball, bubble wrap or felt; string, duct tape, rubber bands
Audience: Public event; Elementary, Middle School
Thursday, October 22, 2020
STEM Week Career Panel: Manufacturing
Thursday, October 22rd – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem Members
Description: We invite educators, middle/high/college students, parents and anyone who’d like to learn about STEM careers to register and join us virtually. Join with your class, as a group or on your own to hear from a panel of Manufacturing professionals and explore this exciting STEM sector. Hear about what led these individual to their careers, their job function, education and more. We hope to showcase diversity in careers and education and inspire your students to “See Themselves in STEM.”
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers, Families
STEM Club 2020
Thursday, October 22nd – 3:30pm – 5:30pm
Hosted by: The STEM Education Center at WPI
Description: Launching the FREE PD series during STEM Week. It’s the 2020-2021 school year and STEM Club is back with a whole new twist! Like never before, we are faced with multiple challenges, we are grappling with issues on racism and trying to incorporate new instructional strategies, all while teaching the subjects we love. Join us to begin the discussion on integrating equity, inclusion and antiracism with STEM activities. Engage in discussions around these topics and help shape our STEM Club 2020 series. It’s a year like no other. Let’s join together to make it the best it can be for ourselves, for our students and for our communities.
Event Partners: CMSN Ecosystem
Audience: Public event; All Grades, Teachers
STEM After School – Ziplining!
Thursday, October 22nd – 3:30 – 4:30pm
Hosted by: WPI Engineering Ambassadors
Description: Ziplines – Ziplines are often thought of as a fun outdoor recreational activity. However, in certain parts of the world ziplines are used for transportation of people and goods. In this session you will discover what forces are behind a successful zipline design and then will have the opportunity to build one yourself!
Supplies you will need: 1 medium paper cup; 1 paper clip; 6 feet of kite string; 1 marble or rock; 1 index card; masking or packing tape; scissors; paper; pencil
Audience: Public event; Elementary, Middle School
Virtual Photosynthesis Teacher Workshop
Thursday, October 22nd – 3:30pm – 5:00pm
Hosted by: MassBioEd Foundation
Description:Students’ understanding of photosynthesis is enhanced when they are able to “see†it evidence of the reaction. In this workshop participants will conduct an algae ball experiment and the floating disk experiment and learn about two ways that, using simple and safe materials, students can do these experiments remotely. Techniques and tips for helping students run these experiments remotely will be discussed and demonstrated.
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Teachers
Region II Science Fair: Community Collaborations Supporting STEM Learning
Thursday, October 22nd – 4:00 – 5:00pm
Hosted by: Massachusetts Science & Engineering Fair
Description: Ziplines – Please join the MA Region II Science & Engineering Fair (Central MA) community for a rich conversation about supporting independent student research through the science and engineering fair process. From students, to university and community partnerships, you will hear from all of the stakeholders that contribute to a robust science and engineering fair program.
Event Sponsors: WPI, Worcester Public Schools, and AbbVie
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers, Families, Adults/Business
Friday, October 23, 2020
Science LIVE (Science Learning with interactive Virtual Education)
Friday, October 23rd – 10:00am – 11:00am
Hosted by: Technocopia Inc., RNA Therapeutics Institute (RTI), Sanderson Center for Optical Experimentation (SCOPE) at UMass Medical School
Description: Science LIVE (Science Learning with Interactive Virtual Education) are free interactive, scientific modules in varying formats. Each module is free and runs Friday mornings from 10-11am. Most modules feature research scientists excited to talk about their research and work. Every module a STEM educator is present to facilitate the talk and help answer student questions.
This program runs Oct. 16th – Dec.11th.
During STEM week, Friday Oct. 23rd, the Science LIVE talk will be: The Building Blocks of Life (exploring cell and molecular biology).
Audience: Public event; Students ages 10-13
STEM Week Career Panel: Construction/Engineering
Friday, October 23rd – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem Members
Description: We invite educators, middle/high/college students, parents and anyone who’d like to learn about STEM careers to register and join us virtually. Join with your class, as a group or on your own to hear from a panel of Construction/Engineering professionals and explore this exciting STEM sector. Hear about what led these individual to their careers, their job function, education and more. We hope to showcase diversity in careers and education and inspire your students to “See Themselves in STEM.”
Audience: Public event; Middle School, High School, Higher Education, Teachers, Families
STEM After School – Packaging Engineering
Friday, October 23nd – 3:30 – 4:30pm
Hosted by: WPI Engineering Ambassadors
Description: Packaging Engineering – Every day we interact with many different forms of packaging from the way our food is packaged, to the way our shampoo and toothpaste is packaged to the way our mail is packaged. What you might not know is there are STEM professionals working to decide the best way to package items for you! Should we use paper, plastic, or both? Should we use recycled materials or new? Should the package be resealable or one-time use? These are all questions that engineers consider when designing packages. In this session you will become the engineer who will design a safe package for a chip product to ship from the factory to your house. Are you ready for the challenge?
Supplies you will need: 4-6 pieces of cardboard cut in 4″x4″ squares; 2-4 pieces of yarn cut into 1-foot strings; 5-6 pieces of aluminum foil cut into 6″x6″ squares; 1 package of snacks (chips, Doritos, crackers); masking or packing tape; scissors; paper; pencil
Audience: Public event; Elementary, Middle School
Virtual STEM Class – Corona Virus…Shoo!
Friday, October 23rd – 5:00 – 6:00pm
Hosted by: STEM Beginnings LLC
Description: The coronavirus pandemic is affecting everyone, including children. So let’s explore STEM, and learn about ways to keep ourselves safe and well. The hygiene routines that slow the spread of the coronavirus, are the same habits that help keep us healthy all year round! And now we even wear MASKS (just like superheroes do!) to help protect ourselves and others too!
Let’s learn and have fun with our friends, STANLEY & EMILY. Join us for our VIRTUAL STEM CLASS called CORONAVIRUS….SHOO! Together, let’s learn about good hygiene, masks and social distancing.
Audience: Public event; Early Education, Elementary
Program is also offered on Wednesday 10/21 at 3:00 PM. See event listing under 10/21 to register.
Private Events
Scratch Virtual Club
Hosted by: Abby Kelly Foster Charter Public School
Description: The goal of the club is to expose students to programming to develop an interest in computer science. Students will use Scratch for animations, games, and other fun projects.
Audience: Elementary School
See Yourself in STEM
Hosted by: Boys & Girls Club of Fitchburg and Leominster
Description: STEM Week will be celebrated in our 3 remote learning sites and our after school program. There is a plethora of fun STEM and STEAM activities planned.
Sponsor: CMSN Ecosystem
Audience: Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Youth Voices about STEM
Hosted by: CMSN Ecosystem & LEI
Description: Students in the Latino Education Institute LASOS program will be having a conversation about how they see themselves in STEM, and what STEM has to offer their communities, while an artist will be making a graphic recording in real time.
Sponsor: CMSN Ecosystem
Audience: Middle Schoo
Insurance IS STEM
Hosted by: Hanover Insurance Group
Description: Hanover Insurance Group, through an event called Insurance IS STEM, will bring awareness of how an insurance company is a viable employment opportunity for students who concentrate in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics studies. Students will see a short video about the company and then experience an active panel discussion among Hanover STEM professionals. They will learn about the company culture, STEM career opportunities, scholarship programs and future internships.
Audience: High School
Spooky Science
Hosted by: WPI & Girls, Inc. Eureka
Description:WPI teacher prep students will be leading Halloween-themed, hands-on STEM activities for Girls, Inc students in the Eureka program.
Audience: Middle School
STEM Start
Hosted by: UMass Medical School
Description: During our STEM Start session, we will be covering two different medical cases. We will discuss proper COVID-19 safety measures (i.e. mask wearing, social distancing) and discuss its effect on the lungs by reviewing abnormal chest x-ray findings and lung sounds. Our second case will be about a shoulder dislocation, and we will again discuss imaging findings and go over the proper techniques to readjust the shoulder. We hope to make these clinical correlations fun and interactive to hopefully encourage interest in a career in medicine among middle school students.
Audience: Middle School
Math Talks with Omo Moses
Hosted by: Worcester Child Development Head Start
Description: We have invited Omo Moses, CEO of the early math education lab, MathTalk from Cambridge, MA, to speak with families about how to inspire adults and children to find math everywhere.
Audience: Early Education
Democracy Cafes: Environmental Cafe
Hosted by: Worcester State University
Description: Dr. Aleel Grennan will present a discussion of Environmental issues at the WSU Democracy Cafés: an ongoing series of non-partisan, information sessions & discussions
Audience: Private event; Higher Education
Sponsored by the following departments at Worcester State University: Learning Resource Center, the History and Political Science Department, the Binienda Center, and the Office of Sustainability
WSU Faculty Shared Scholarship Series
Hosted by: Worcester State University
Description: Karl Wurst, (WSU Computer Science), and Stoney Jackson (Western New England University) will present their work titled: LibreFoodPantry: Developing a Multi-Institutional, Faculty-Led, Humanitarian Free and Open Source Software Community
Audience: Private event; Higher Education
Sponsored by: WSU Shared Scholarship Series
13th Annual Sustainability/Food Day Fair: Environmental and Climate Justice
Hosted by: Worcester State University
Description: Pre-Recorded Teach-Ins – Available 9:00 to 3:00 Wednesday and Thursday:
Dr. Meghna Dilip: Chemistry Green Solutions for Climate Change
Margaret E. Kerr, Ph.D: Paper or Plastic
Professor Tarr A Green: New Deal for Climate Justice
Syamak Moattari, MD, Dr.PH Sustainable Development Goals and COVID-19
Allison L. Dun, Ph.D: Climate 101: Earth’s climate and how it is changing
Maura Collins Pavao, Ph.D: Biotechnology, Sustainability and Climate Change
Adam Saltsman, Ph.D.: Refugees in the City: An Interview with Dr. Anita Fábos
Audience: Private event; Higher Education
Sponsored by: WSU Office of Sustainability