One of my favorite movies is Disney’s Meet the Robinsons. Throughout the film, Lewis, the protagonist, is encouraged to “keep moving forward.” At the end of the film there is a quote from Walt Disney
“Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious… and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
Just like the support Lewis receives from the Robinsons, here at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County we work to support our Club members as they “keep moving forward,” and exploring new paths for themselves. Do you remember trying something for the first time as a child? Maybe it was your first public performance, or learning a new sport or game, or maybe it was something as simple as doing a science experiment. Youth is a great time for discovery, and it’s a time when each of us can lay the foundation for our own great futures.
In a little more than a week, March 25th-27th, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County will be helping to sponsor and host the Utah STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) Festival at Utah Valley University in the UCCU Events Center. The event is designed for 7th and 8th grade students, and more than 12,000 are registered to attend. Additionally, it will be open to the public from 2-8pm on Friday, March 27th so anyone who wants can attend and experience it.
This event wouldn’t be possible without the incredible companies, organizations, and universities sponsoring it, and setting up booths and activities for the students. The time and effort put into this event are truly spectacular and it will be an amazing experience for the students who attend.
Shanni Call, the coordinator for the entire event, says:
The first annual Utah STEM Fest is an amazing event bringing together 7th and 8th grade students statewide to participate in a hands-on, innovative experience like no other. There are 60+ companies involved that are willing to share their industry with their future employees. I hope this event will help kids to do great things.
David Bayles, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County, commented:
The Utah stem fest is a great opportunity for youth to explore stem career pathways. With so many technology companies in Utah, it is important that education align with the workforce demands of the marketplace.
For this incredible event I invite you to do two things:
- Attend the event on Friday afternoon/evening.This will be a great time, and fun for all ages. There’s plenty to do and see with the different booths that sponsors are setting up! Come experience the exciting STEM activities featured.
- Volunteer your time and help out with the event.Follow this link and sign up for a volunteer shift. We could use your support here to make this event as successful as possible!
This STEM Festival is all about opening up new doors and helping Utah’s students and STEM industries to keep moving forward as well, to help these students to get excited about these types of careers and lead them to pursuing higher education, and degrees in these fields which will enable them to work at these companies, and keep jobs in-state. Even if students decide not to pursue these fields, they’ll have been exposed to the option and can make a more informed choice about what they want to pursue. That’s what laying a foundation is all about, and at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County, the focus is empowering Club members to discover the possibilities, and keep moving forward towards their own great futures. STEM Fest is just one of the ways that great futures start here.