Campus & Community

Families with school-age children usually spend Saturdays pursuing sports and other leisure activities, with a lot of errands thrown in for good measure. This past Saturday, however, 15 children, from preschoolers to high school students, along with one or both parents, took time out to explore biology, anatomy, chemistry, math and physics at the first STEM Saturday event at Palm Beach State College’s Lake Worth campus.

Organized by Dr. Sankaranarayana Chandramohan, PBSC professor of anatomy and physiology and microbiology, STEM Saturdays grew out of the response he saw to the activity tables he and his students have been hosting at the “Our Body: The Universe Within” exhibit at the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium in West Palm Beach.  “Families visiting our tables seemed hungry for ways to extend the learning,” said Chandramohan, known as Dr. Chandra.

The two-hour event was held in the Natural Science building and offered a range of demonstrations, hands-on challenges, crafts and puzzles. Six faculty members and five PBSC students led the activities, with the help of College staff. Parents and children also took a tour of the building’s science laboratories.

“Our guests were fully immersed and engaged,” said Chandra, citing the positive feedback he received:

“It was good. It was fun. You are awesome.” — Chase
“Thank you for organizing such an amazing experience for the community.” — Dana DeFilippo, Chase’s mother
“I loved to do learning experiments, make a skeleton and learn about the skeleton.” — Lily
“Thank you to all the wonderful professors for volunteering. We parents truly appreciate your time given to teach/show about science to our children. Again, thank you.” — Shendi White, parent

Chandra added, “It is all about community building and doing the right things for a strong and even better future for our children and families.”

Two more STEM Saturdays are scheduled for March 25 and April 29, from noon to 2 p.m., in the Natural Science building, room NS129. For more information or to RSVP, call 561-868-4021.