from Forsyth School
On May 20, Susan Zareh from Forsyth School was awarded the 2021 Carol B. and Jerome T. Loeb Prize for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics.
Carol B. Loeb presented the award to Susan as well as the other finalists—Devon Lahr (2nd Place) from Mehlville School, Jennifer Adams from Clayton High School, Laura Schowalter from Nipher Middle School and Elizabeth Walsh-Rock from STEAM Academy at McCluer South-Berkeley.
The awards ceremony took place in the OMNIMAX® Theater and was attended by the teachers and their invited guests. 2021 marks the 26th year the Loeb Prize has honored outstanding science and math educators in the St. Louis area.
YES at 2021 NFTE Regional Competition
This year, the Saint Louis Science Center’s Youth Exploring Science (YES) Program competed in the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Regional Competition. Two YES teen businesses advanced to the final round, which consisted of the top three NFTE businesses in the region.
YES Teens Kira Miller and De’Mea White are founders and co-CEOs of Ms. Curvyy, a business that boosts girls’ self-confidence through apparel and accessories and provides a support group. Ms. Curvyy won 2nd place in the region and $1,000. YES Teen Nehtia Hazelwood is the Founder and CEO of Nervy Beauty, a business that helps kids embrace their cultural identity and unique names through customizable accessories. Nehtia won 1st place in the region, a prize of $1,500, and the Regional Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The NFTE finalists were presented their awards on May 20.
Congratulations to Kira, De’Mea, and Nehtia as they make their way to Nationals.
On-the-Job Training
We are proud to be able to offer senior YES Teens the opportunity to participate in On-the-Job Training (OJT) internships during the summer. Through the OJT internships, YES Teens have an opportunity to grow and exercise their skills to complement their current curriculum in the YES Program, while simultaneously learning new systems in their OJT placements.
As they put their new work skills to practice, the YES Teens are learning real life work experience through offsite programming. Some help serve their community by providing fun STEM programming to young campers. Other areas the YES Teens have been able to work include the Exhibitions Department, Guest Services Department as well as working within Science Center galleries.
Looking Outward
As a way to turn their efforts outward, the YES Program took a variety of hands-on STEM activities to area sites
throughout the St. Louis Metropolitan area. Through this initiative, this community outreach program was able to reach 300 campers, ranging from 1st–5th grade in the University City School District. Summer activities included teaching campers about plants and the importance of pollination, how they can make an environmental impact on their own community, how to use their own creativity and the engineering design process to invent gadgets, and many more STEM initiatives.
Science in the Sun
During the summer, the Youth Exploring Science (YES) Program educates guests through Summertime Science—a free educational program that is led by the YES Program’s youngest teen employees. The YES Teens are responsible for leading classes that teach about science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics.
This year, the Summertime Science program’s theme was Aerospace in partnership with Boeing. Throughout the summer, YES Teens taught in-person and virtual learners about aerospace, forces of flight, and the types of chemical reactions that launch rockets. A special thank you to Boeing and our community partners for another successful summer.