Each year, two delegates from each state are invited to the National Youth Science Camp for opportunities to meet and learn from top scientists in the country.
Andrea Baerwald is the science and technology coordinator at the Department of Education in Idaho and gives students opportunities at both the state and national level with all things science and technology, including the youth science camp.
The program is designed to help challenge students while also giving them amazing opportunities to speak to professionals, do directed studies, attend seminars and lecture series, and to “do science on a bigger scale.”
The selected students will be greeted in West Virginia by some of the top scientists in the country, but students won’t exactly know who they will be meeting until they get there. Because professionals will be attending, schedule conflicts may occur.
“Part of the allure of this camp is it’s a little bit of a ‘you don’t know until you get there,’” Baerwald said. “They have a lot of opportunities for students to be doing stem, but part of that is they have professionals that are really high in their field, which means they don’t always want to put out that they’re going to be there because if things change, they’re called away, they have to switch things up.”
Last year, students met a former Idaho delegate who is now the head scientist for the International Space Station, making this opportunity one that Idaho students can’t pass up.
Applications are open until Feb. 28. The application process is lengthy, so Baerwald suggests starting today. You can find the application here.