Sept. 20, 2006 — In an effort to help fulfill President George Bushs goal of creating an American Competitive Initiative, the University of the Virgin Islands is seeking students in grades six through 12 to participate in the university's 2006-2007 Science Awareness Saturday Academies program.
Science Awareness Academies are enrichment programs designed to provide students with a broader exposure to science than is available from their regular classroom studies. Instruction will be provided by members of the UVI science faculty and staff.
The academies are scheduled to begin Sept. 24 on the St. Thomas campus and Sept. 30 on the St. Croix campus. The application deadline is Sept. 22. Students have already been widely recruited from the territory's schools.
Academies are divided into sections for junior high and senior high students. Participants will meet from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on one Saturday a month, through April.
Funding is provided by a grant from the Health Careers Opportunities Program (HCOP) of the Health and Human Services Department. There is no cost to students for the program.
An interview process for academy applicants on St. Thomas is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 24. It coincides with UVIs annual Fall Research Symposium held at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center. This will give prospective academy participants a chance to interact with a number of UVI student scientists who will be presenting the results of the various research projects and the independent study they conducted over the past academic year and summer.
On St. Croix, student applications will be screened by program coordinator Jacqueline Kowalski.
For more information, on St. Thomas contact UVI Program Manager Tannesia Petersen at 693-1232; or Kowalski at 692-4076 on St. Croix.
