The Academy for Science and Design Hosted its First SPARK Conference Day of the School Year

Nashua Mayor Donnalee Lozeau with sophomore Ian Ayer at the “Oktoberfest, a Bavarian Cultural Experience” SPARK Conference session.

The Academy for Science and Design Charter School, the state’s top-performing public school and largest STEM-specialty school serving students in grades 6-12 , hosted its first SPARK conference day of the school year on Wednesday, October 21, 2015. SPARK Conferences (Symposium Promoting Advancement of Real-World Knowledge) are intended to expose our students to various STEM careers, relevant topics and issues in the realm of science and technology, as well as cultivate their unique interests and talents.

Presenters at SPARK include various members of the ASD school community such as faculty, students, and parents; in addition, SPARK presenters come from local community organizations, some are individuals from higher educational institutions, while others are innovators within the corporate sphere. These presenters believe it is critical to enlighten and inspire our young leaders of tomorrow through exposure to experiences, ideas, and challenges that will help them to become creative and energetic leaders. Individuals who give their time to this conference series are shaping New Hampshire’s future in the realm of science and technology. Presentations at SPARK can be in any format necessary - workshops, labs, lectures, round-table discussions, panel-discussions, etc.

SPARK presenters were impressed by the enthusiasm and depth of knowledge of ASD’s student body. Nashua Mayor Donnalee Lozeau was a guest and got to experience some of these sessions first hand. Popular sessions presented by members of the community included “Science at -321 Degrees” (Rita McCabe and Arthur Keefe, Sub Zero Ice Cream), “The Science and Art of Baking Bread” (Jeremy St. Hilaire, Great Harvest Bread Company), “NAO Robot Demonstration” (Michael Radice, ChartaCloud Technologies), “LASER Physics” (Scott Bobbitt, DMD, www.drbobbitt.com), “Racing at the Limit: the Physics of Going Fast” (Greg Czuba and Kevin Bjerke), “Reduce Test Anxiety with EFT” (Becki Stevens, EFT/Tapping Coach), “Paper Craft: Candy Corn Treat Boxes” (Jennifer DelSesto), “Turkish Tea” with Emily Jacobs,“Intro to Sewing” (Nancy Lavin) and many more.

All of the students got to choose which sessions they attended, and this SPARK day offered a variety of fascinating topic to explore, like: Design and Create a New Board Game, Introduction to Bridge, Complex Numbers in Real Life, Pixar in a Box, 21st Century Latin, NOAA, and the NOAA Commissioned Corps, Pumpkin Chunkin’, The John Green Experience, Periodic Table Bingo, Mock Witch Trial, Build a Website with HTML & CSS, Chinese Board Games, Create Your Own Monster, Book Chat “Go Set A Watchman”, Drafting Battle For Zendikar, Knot Now!, Tech Meets Art! - Interactive Sculpture, Girls’ Football, Unknown Pixar, Animation Celebration, Graham Cracker Haunted Houses , Making And Flying Tissue Hot Air Balloons, History Of News And Media, What if?, From The Earth To The Moon, ASD Open Mike, History Mystery, Stress Management and Relaxation Techniques, Fall Into Poetry, A Look Into The Future, Price Tags and Brand Names, The Shape Of Skiing - Thrills And Spills, Mountains And History, A Cheetah - Nature’s Own Flash, Codes and Ciphers and many more.

In addition to the above sessions, upper class students, along with an adult advisor, had an opportunity to be SPARK presenters. These student-run sessions included: “Game Theory” (Samantha Harper), “WWII: A Critical Point In History” (Nicholas Federico), “Movers And Shakers” (Maya Yaakov), “Oktoberfest, a Bavarian Cultural Experience,” (Ian Ayer, Andrew Frischknecht, and Benjamin Frothingham) and “Study Skills 101” (Aasha Krishnan). ASD has a stewardship requirement of 150 service hours in order for students to graduate. All of our students excel at helping others in the community, but the students who ran a SPARK session took the opportunity to share their knowledge with fellow students while also volunteering to help the school offer a larger variety of sessions. Stewardship supports the theory that the future leaders, when left on their own, will indeed act as responsible stewards of their environment, and it is also about community service. Through various volunteer experiences, students gain a deeper sense of themselves, their abilities and gifts, the needs of strangers (and in this case, fellow students), and their connectedness to the larger world.

The Academy for Science and Design is actively seeking to partner with local companies and businesses for student-centered things such as internships in STEM fields for our students, financial donations, and/or presenters for our school for the SPARK Conferences. Financial donations can be an outright financial contribution in the amount of your choice, or can consist of underwriting costs for installing a specific facility technology or program. The Academy for Science and Design has three more SPARK Conferences scheduled this year, and presenters from the community are always welcome. Admissions for the 2016-2017 school year is open. More information can be found on our website at www.asdnh.org or email Amy.Bewley@asdnh.org.