Voinovich School engages regional youth in summer STEM activities

Regional youth in Pike, Jackson and Ross counties engaged with Ohio University staff and students in hands-on activities to learn about water quality and residential storm water pollution mitigation at county fairs during July and August.

Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service PORTSfuture Program sponsored these activities for one day at each of the three county fairs as part of the program’s Summer STEM Days outreach.

"The events were a great interactive way to engage kids in environmental science and spark their natural inquisitive nature," said Ohio University graduate student of environmental studies Nichole Mazzone.

Nora Sullivan, Amy Mackey, Nichole Mazzone, David Jenkins and Stephanie Howe led fairgoers in activities that included interacting with a storm water display which shows residential storm water pollution accumulation for mitigated and non-mitigated scenarios by activating rain simulations. These simulations illustrated to what extent storm water collects residential pollutants for each scenario. Youth were educated on simple mitigation techniques that can be taken at home to reduce residential storm water pollution, such as using rain barrels, washing cars on pavement rather than grass, and cleaning up leaves, yard waste and pet waste from lawns.

The youngsters also played “pH Bingo” by utilizing pH strips to test a variety of common substances. The youth tested for a range of pH levels from acidity and alkalinity and marked the corresponding pH levels on their bingo cards. Substances they tested included acidic liquids such as orange juice, lemon juice, coffee, tea, soda, vinegar, hot sauce, body wash, and dish soap; neutral substances such as tap water; and alkaline substances such as egg whites, antacids, baking soda, and everyday household spray cleaner. Youth were educated about the pH scale and the differences between substances.

“These Summer STEM Days events provided an engaging opportunity for participants to explore science techniques through hands-on activities. Our outreach efforts strive to inspire their interest in STEM careers for the future,” said Stephanie Howe, Voinovich School PORTSfuture program director. “The earlier we can encourage kids to think about career options, the more opportunities they will have post-graduation.”

These events were funded by a collaboration between Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service and the School’s PORTSfuture grant, which is funded by the US Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office.

The PORTSfuture Program is developing additional offerings that will increase hands-on STEM learning in the coming academic year, including expanding partnerships with the Appalachian STEM Enrichment Academy, the Ohio STEM Learning Network Southeast Ohio hub, the AEP Foundation, and US DOE site contractor Fluor BWXT. To learn more about the PORTSfuture program, visit www.portsfuture.com.

For more information, contact Stephanie Howe at howe@ohio.edu.