Media Advisory
July 19-20, 2012; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cal State L.A. students to make an ‘IMPACT’—inspiring local middle-schoolers to become future engineers, scientists
IMPACT LA campers to create lava lamps, solve a crime, race cardboard boats, build paper rockets
Los Angeles, CA -- More than 80 6th- through 8th-graders from throughout Greater Los Angeles will participate in fun-filled, hands-on science and engineering activities during the 2012 IMPACT LA Summer Camp at Cal State L.A. on Thursday and Friday, July 19-20.
Led by CSULA graduate students, the two-day camp is designed to “impact” the middle-school students by providing a glimpse of what a future career as an engineer and scientist might be like.
To spark their interest in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, the CSULA team will engage the young students in the following:
Thursday, July 19:
9 to 9:45 a.m. – Blast Off activity with paper rockets (Engineering & Techonology patio)
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (groups of students will rotate through each activity per hour) – Tic-tac Flashlight (E&T C248) and Crime Scene Investigation: Who Did It? (E&T C160)
3 to 5 p.m. – Egg Drop Design Challenge (E&T Patio)
Friday, July 20:
9 to 10 a.m. (group activity) – Lava Lamp: Liquid Show for the Eyes (E&T Patio)
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (groups of students will rotate through each activity per hour) – Ice Cream in a Bag (E&T Patio, south side) and Zebrafish Jaw Model (E&T C160)
3 to 5 p.m. – Cardboard Boat Design begins at 2:30 p.m., followed by Cardboard Boat Race in the campus pool at 4 p.m.
IMPACT LA stands for Improving Minority Partnerships and Access through CISE*-related Teaching (*CISE refers to “Computer and Information Science and Engineering”). Funded by a five-year, $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), the program pairs college graduate students and local K-12 math or science teachers. For more about the IMPACT LA NSF Graduate STEM Fellows in K-12 Education Program, go to http://impactla.calstatela.edu.
Media representatives are welcome to observe the activities from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Organizers, teachers and students will also be available for photos and interviews. To make arrangements, call the Public Affairs office ahead of time at Cal State L.A., (323) 343-3050.
Cal State L.A. is located at the intersection of the 10 and 710 freeway. Public permit dispenser parking is available in Lot 5 and upper level Parking Structure C. For campus map and directions, go to /univ/maps/cslamap.php.
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Working for California since 1947: The 175-acre hilltop campus of California State University, Los Angeles is at the heart of a major metropolitan city, just five miles from Los Angeles’ civic and cultural center. More than 20,000 students and 225,000 alumni—with a wide variety of interests, ages and backgrounds—reflect the city’s dynamic mix of populations. Six Colleges offer nationally recognized science, arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education and humanities programs, among others, led by an award-winning faculty. Cal State L.A. is home to the critically-acclaimed Luckman Jazz Orchestra and to the Honors College for high-achieving students. Programs that provide exciting enrichment opportunities to students and community include an NEH-supported humanities center; a NASA-funded center for space research; and a growing forensic science program, housed in the Hertzberg-Davis Forensic Science Center. www.calstatela.edu