A vital consideration of our STEM YEA Academy experience is safety.
We need volunteers to walk the students to and from all of their events. We will have dorm floor monitors on duty throughout the night. Upon signing up you will be contacted by the Rotary District 7430 Youth Compliance Officer for STEM YEA with further information regarding Rotary Youth Protection Policy screening.
A great side benefit for volunteers is that you are welcome to sit in on the sessions yourself, which can be rewarding in several aspects. The SETI Institute, working with the STEM YEA Curriculum Development team, developed an innovative interdisciplinary curriculum of hands-on STEM and project sessions around the theme – Astrobiology: Search for Life on Mars, engaging the student in multiple sciences and cross-sciences while encouraging important team-building and leadership skills. In addition, we have infused the learning with an awareness of Rotary’s causes and opportunities to work towards solutions for the future.
Choosing to volunteer at STEM YEA is rewarding in many ways
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a volunteer for STEM YEA, especially if you attend multiple days, is that you can see our students growing in confidence, beginning to believe they CAN become someone successfuly pursuing a STEM career.
We need volunteers to help with registering students on the 1st day of the Academy (Thursday morning in the early afternoon) which includes help setting up the registration table.
We also need volunteers throughout the college to direct students’ parents to the parking lot, the registration site, and to the dormitories, along with help in the dormitories to get the students situated into their correct room assignments. During the Academy sessions, volunteers generally will be with the students for a good portion of the day. Most of the volunteer contact will occur in group settings, but there may be times when a pair of STEM YEA volunteers needs to take/assist a student to go to another campus building or area for medical attention, to pick up an item that was forgotten/left behind at some location, or for some other reason.
Overnight volunteers will be responsible for monitoring the students on the dormitory floor. (Overnight volunteers will be assigned a room). In addition, we will need volunteers to help with the final day’s celebratory dinner event (Sunday 3:00 PM to 8:00 PM), manning various stations on the college campus to direct students’ parents, business sponsors and guests to the parking lot and the event location and assisting with the setup of event decorations.
Gary Englehardt
VOLUNTEER Coordinator
Gary Englehardt, a member of the Allentown West Rotary Club, is serving as the STEM YEA Volunteer Coordinator as well as Program Manager. Provide your name and contact information to your Local Club Rep or to Gary Englehardt or you may use the Volunteer Form at the link below. After completing the form and submitting it, you will receive an email confirming your information. You will have the ability to edit your information if necessary.
To Become a Volunteer
As a volunteer you will need to satisfy the Rotary Youth Protection Policy requirements. Overnight volunteers will need to have a VolunteerLocal Background check (there is no cost to you). You will be contacted by the Rotary District 7430 Youth Compliance Officer for STEM YEA with further information.
Instructions for Volunteers - A description of the volunteering process
Volunteer Form - Click the link and supply your information.