Montana Tech Institute for Educational Opportunities Awarded Grant to Fund Intermountain Junior Science and Humanities Symposium

The Clark Fork Watershed Education Program (Cfwep.Org) of the Institute for Educational Opportunities at Montana Tech has been awarded funding in the amount of $23,500 to host the Intermountain Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (IJSHS) on February 25-26, 2015. The IJSHS will occur in conjunction with the Montana Tech Regional Science and Engineering Fair.

The Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) Program is a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competition for high school students conducting original research and is funded by the Academy of Applied Sciences (AAS) on behalf of the Army Educational Outreach Program and the US. Army, Navy, and Air Force.

According to the AAS, the mission of the JSHS program is:

• - To promote research and experimentation in STEM disciplines at the high school level.
• - To recognize the significance of research in human affairs, and the importance of humane and ethical principles in the application of research results.
• - To search out talented youth and their teachers, recognize their accomplishments at symposia, and encourage their continued interest and participation in STEM disciplines.
• - To expand the horizons of research oriented students by exposing them to future career opportunities in STEM within the Department of Defense, academia, industry, and Government.
• - To increase the number of future adults capable of conducting research and development.

Students from MT, ID, UT, NV, and CO will conduct original research and submit research papers for review in early January. Faculty and professionals will read the papers and recommend the top 18 for advancement to a symposium-style competition. Up to 42 additional students will be invited to participate in a non-competitive poster session. In addition, teachers of invited students may attend and take part in symposium activities. Symposium events will include Montana Tech laboratory tours, Butte historical tours, welcome and awards banquets, and a keynote speaker event that is open to the public.

The top five finalists at the IJSHS will receive an expense-paid trip to present their work and compete at the national JSHS competition in Washington D.C. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finalists will receive a $2,000, $1,500, and $1,000 undergraduate tuition scholarship, respectively. In addition, one teacher will receive a $500 award honoring their contributions to advancing student participation in research.
Cfwep.Org is seeking faculty and professional scientists and engineers interested in judging research papers and the symposium competition.

Please contact Emily Munday emunday@mtech.edu for more information.
Learn more at: jshs.org/about.html