By Lauren Lifke
More than 100 students ranging in age from sixth grade through their senior year of high school gathered in the Moriarty High School performing arts center Friday to spend a day learning about science, technology, engineering and math.
Students were welcome to visit tables and interactive workshops from Sandia National Laboratories, the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and Los Alamos National Laboratories, among others, Moriarty High School principal Natalie Romero said. Students also listened to a presentation about drones from a New Mexico Tech professor. This year, there are five more workshops than were available last year.
Makenna Patten is a senior at Moriarty High School, where she is the president of the Interact club, through which she volunteered to help out with the Women in STEM event.
“Each year it seems to have progressed and evolved into something better,” Patten said. “We’ve had a lot of increase in numbers, and also more opportunities for students to learn about. We have more groups to go into as well, and a lot of the kids are excited.”
Science and math teachers from the high school showcased workshops with STEM topics ranging from wildlife to dentistry.
Keynote speaker Mostafa Hassanalian, associate professor of mechanical engineering at New Mexico Tech University, showcased a variety of drones that his graduate students have worked on. Student favorites during the presentation included a drone dog that listens to commands and a taxidermied duck that’s been programmed to fly.
“The main reason that we include this in my presentation is that kids — they love animals. It’s in their nature,” Hassanalian said. “Specifically, middle school students. So that can basically attract their attention to this topic, which is not only for engineers. It can be for whoever wants to learn from nature.”
His presentation is curated to educate people of all ages and backgrounds, he said, from elementary school to high school, and from arts to engineering.
“That’s something that you can attract students with a different background, with different interests and have different audiences,” Hassanalian said.
Romero said events like this are especially important for her students because they are from rural communities.
“They understand that they have a space in science and engineering,” Romero said.
