Fostering curiosity, knowledge and appreciation in science, and especially the chemical sciences, is a crucial component in addressing important local and global issues facing society, now and in the future.  Outreach programs integrating academic and industry professionals with non-profit organizations can be highly impactful in engaging communities in active learning about chemistry.  One such program is STEMfest!, an integrative science competition held at The Works Museum in Newark, OH.  STEMfest! is an annual competition and celebration of science held in collaboration with local professionals, including faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Denison University.  It is aimed at engaging middle and high school students in STEM related learning, and for the past four years Denison faculty have offered challenging problems related to the chemical sciences, both in theory and practice, for local high school teams to engage in.  Upon registering for STEMfest!, students have two months to work on each problem (such as building the best home water filtration device), during which time they have access to industry professionals and/or faculty to ask questions. This talk will explore the implementation, evolution and success of STEMfest!, with a focus on the development and execution of chemistry-related challenges for high school students.

STEMfest!: Engaged problem solving in the chemical sciences for high school students

248th National Meeting (2014)

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