NEW 200 Foundation hosts first STEM Expo

More than 700 students, parents and community members recently learned about science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, during the NEW 200 Foundation's first STEM Expo.

"It's a very big area in education right now and one of the initiatives, as a foundation, that we're supporting in the schools," said NEW 200 Foundation President Pamela Paulsen.

The event, which organizers say sold out in 24 hours, was intended to give children and families an opportunity to explore STEM while raising awareness about the foundation.

The halls at Hubble Middle School in Warrenville were filled with a variety of STEM activities that explored physics, chemistry, robotics, astronomy and environmental science. Organizations represented at the event included Fermilab, Argonne National Lab, the DuPage County Forest Preserve, the DuPage Children's Museum and robotics teams and science clubs from several District 200 schools.

The foundation raised more than $5,000 at the event through sponsorships, individual donations and raffle sales. The money will be used to provide new STEM materials and resources to District 200 students.

Already, the foundation has committed to providing teacher grants to educators wanting to bring more STEM lessons into their classrooms. The group also is purchasing robotics kits for eighth-graders in robotics classes at all four of the district's middle schools.

Planning is already underway for next year's expo, which organizers hope to host on a Saturday in a larger building as an all-day event.

Anyone interested in making a donation or learning more about the organization can visit new200.org.