EYES camp to expand its outreach thanks to national funding help
Posted: May 6, 2016 11:00 a.m.
In the middle of the mayhem is Jordan Nixdorf, Coordinator of the EYES program at the U of R and a graduate of the Faculty of Science. Photo courtesy of EYES.
|
The U of R’s popular EYES program (Educating Young in Engineering and Science) is getting a big boost.
The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada has renewed its support of EYES with $120,000 over three years. The funding, announced May 6, comes from the Council’s Promo Science Program, which supports science outreach for youth in communities across Canada.
“We’re thrilled to receive this level of incredible support,” says Jordan Nixdorf, coordinator of the EYES program. Nixdorf graduated with a degree in Science from the U of R in 2015.
 |
| Children at a circuit board at one of our EYES camps. We're now taking registrations for upcoming EYES camps. Check the link below for details. (EYES camp photo). |
Since the first EYES summer camp was held at the U of R in 1995, the program has catered to thousands of young people from the Regina area, providing them with an informative and fun science education.
EYES typically hires science, engineering and education university students as instructors for workshop and camp programs.
EYES offers a variety of programs. Its in-school workshop program is highly regarded by teachers and students and reaches more than 750 classrooms annually.
The summer camp program has expanded to include an All-Girls program, nine satellite camps outside Regina (Assiniboia, Balcarres, Esterhazy, Estevan, Foam Lake, Moose Jaw, Shaunavon, Swift Current, and Weyburn), in addition to regular camp programming on campus.
In all, EYES reached nearly 18,000 youth in southern Saskatchewan in 2015.
It has also partnered with the Regina Open Door Society, an organization that works with new immigrants.
“We’re committed to developing in all youth in southern Saskatchewan, an interest in science, engineering, and technology,” says Nixdorf.
That outreach includes Aboriginal children.
“This is critically important for us,” says Nixdorf. “Our efforts are driven by seeing more people of Aboriginal descent pursuing careers in science, engineering and technology.”
Its efforts have resulted in a partnership in Regina with Street Culture Kidz, which delivers programs to children in North Central Regina.
Nixdorf says parents have given the program positive feedback.
One parent wrote,“engaging my son, who is a status Indian, in the sciences and engineering disciplines is crucial if we want to increase the number of Aboriginal leaders in sciences and engineering careers.”
The funding from the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada will complement the support EYES receives from the provincial and federal governments, foundations, private sector companies and the University of Regina.
EYES summer camps are now accepting registrations. Please visit this link for information on the camps and how to register,