LESLIE KOYAMA
Generation Sci
Role: Co-Founder
Quotes from student surveys:
"Since this is my first science conference, I was very intimidated by being at such an accredited school like Stanford University. However, everyone was very welcoming and the information being taught is one of a kind."
"I loved the focus on finding your own path and the diversity of topics...Thank you!!"
"I loved hearing about the research the students are working on as I hope to some day be a part of the research community. The diversity of topics was inspiring."
"[The conference] made going into a STEM field seem possible and exciting."
"This was an amazing opportunity to get a look into the research that is happening right now and what it might be like to get a Ph.D."
About Generation Sci:
Generation Sci is a student-run conference aimed at connecting Stanford researchers and local community college students. The conference was founded by a group of three student-run, Stanford, STEM outreach groups (Science Teaching through Art [STAR], The Dish on Science, Neuwrite West) who combined their expertise to create a comprehensive experience to:
1.) train Stanford researchers to be effective communicators in oral, written, and visual media
2.) excite and inform local community college students about STEM research
To see previous programs and learn more about what Generation Sci is currently up to visit their website generationsci.com.
Training Stanford Researchers:
Our Goal: Stanford graduate students and researchers are trained extensively on how to communicate in a scientific setting (grant writing, professional talks, etc). However, there is a very little training for communicating with the general public. As founders of Generation Sci, we felt that this was a crucial component of scientific training that was being neglected.
The Approach: We created a series of workshops in collaboration with Science Teaching through Art (STAR), The Dish on Science, Neuwrite West, and Stanford's Hume Center for Writing and Speaking. With STAR, we took advantage of their infographic poster workshop to encourage Stanford researchers to create a fun and approachable poster to present at Generation Sci. With The Dish on Science, Neuwrite West, and Stanford's Hume Center, we created a series of workshops to help researchers write a compelling lay abstract describing their research, apply to give a talk, and then develop and practice a 12 minute, TED-style presentation on their research and path to science.
The Result: Since our first round of workshops in Winter Quarter 2018, we have trained 23 Stanford researchers on using visual graphics to convey their research through an infographic poster with STAR. We have also trained 22 Stanford researchers on writing and oral communication through our workshops with The Dish on Science, Neuwrite West, and The Hume Center.
Outreach with Local Community College Students:
Our Goal: Few STEM outreach groups at Stanford provide opportunities to allow researchers and local community college students to connect. Through STAR, I had previous experience working with local community college students and as a pilot we decided to focus on this group.
The Approach: We worked with faculty and directors of MESA (Math, Engineering, Science Achievement) programs at local community colleges to recruit students to our conference. In addition, we also worked closely with the MESA director at Canada College to develop a schedule that would appeal to students interested in pursuing a STEM career. We also surveyed students, faculty, and community college program directors at each conference to receive feedback on the quality of the information provided.
The Result: In Spring 2018, we hosted 89 community college students from 11 community colleges affiliated with the MESA program around Northern California for a one day conference. In 2019, we expanded to host 145 community college students from 15 local community colleges affiliated with either MESA or StemCore.