In 2016 the Career Expo will continue are hosting highly engaging sessions for students who travel from distant schools. Sessions are designed as  hands-on opportunities that will develop an interest in a variety of Health, Tech, and Trades careers, each one hour in length. Below are short descriptions of the  sessions for 2016:

• Session 1 – What is 6ft long yet still microscopic? It is said that DNA provides the instructions for life itself. But how do four molecules repeated billions of times along the length of the human genome translate into a human being?  Come and discover more about DNA and even extract some of your own! It doesn’t hurt a bit!  This session is facilitated by Carrie Leopold M.S. and her Inspire Innovation Laboratory.

• Session 2 – Acids and Bases: Careers in laboratory research, healthcare, and the culinary arts require an understanding of chemistry; of special importance is an understanding of pH–the amount of acid or base in a solution.  In this workshop we will discuss acids and bases, how they affect pH, and why pH is such an important concept. We will also discover how pH is measured and controlled in laboratory settings, and the effects that changes in pH may have on other molecules in solution. This session is provided by Dr. Erin Nyren of Discovery Express Kids.

• Session 3 – Drone Robotics: Students will explore coding a mini-drone (Parrot Airborne Cargo), spherical robot (Sphero-SPRK) and a line-following robot (Ozobot). Block style programming provides a quick introduction of commanding drones/robots via code. Several challenges will be offered to students in small groups. Programming lines with specific colors and sequences to command Ozobots. Students will experience the joy of play and learning by programming. This session is provided by the teaching and learning specialists of EduTech.

• Session 4 – Drone Technology in the Civil Engineering and Land Surveying Industry With the new technology in Unmanned Aerial Systems and photo processing software, the Civil Engineering and Land Surveying industry has been forever changed. Come see the new capabilities in our industry with utilization of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Everything from high resolution aerial photos to accurate 3D models. This session is brought to you by North Dakota State School of Science’s Construction Management Program.

• Session 5 – Exploring the Universe in the Geodome: Students explore the universe in this state of the art 3D simulation of the stars, learning about star formation, galaxies, nebula, and super-nova. Participants will “fly” in the Geodome in this immersive and memorable experience that focuses  aerospace careers.  Facilitating the session will be Astrophysicist Dr. Timothy Young from the University of North Dakota Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Each session will run at 9:15 am, 10:45 am, 12:15 pm.  Attendance was limited to selected schools, for more information on these sessions, for more information please contact Jenny Erickson.

See STEM Sessions 2015 for additional perspective on the learning content.