Outreach Opportunity Alerts
Outreach Opportunity Alerts connect members of the Caltech community with educational outreach opportunities in the Pasadena community and beyond for which they can volunteer. They are published monthly.
To join the newsletter mailing list for Outreach Opportunity Alerts, members of the Caltech community can sign up here: https://mailchi.mp/caltech/caltech-outreach-opportunity-alert-signup or email Kitty Cahalan, kcahalan@caltech.edu. Please give Kitty your name, email address, Caltech affiliation (undergraduate, graduate student, postdoc, faculty or staff) and department, option or research group.
March 2025
Although there is much on our minds these days concerning matters local and beyond, we also see much to celebrate, especially as we enter Women's History Month. A list of famous women-identifying scientists shows how many have faced barriers that were structural, personal, and political, and advanced society as a result of their efforts. Many of their stories include being inspired by someone who showed them there was a pathway to their studies and careers. Participating in educational outreach allows you to be that catalyst for future scientists and engineers!
See below for upcoming opportunities to do just that!
City of STEM
City of STEM, the largest Science and Engineering festival in Los Angeles, will be at Exposition Park (next to the Natural History Museum) on Saturday, April 12. Caltech Educational Outreach has reserved a large booth for volunteers to host fun, hands-on demonstrations and activities at this family event that attracts 10,000 participants! Any activity is welcome, and CTLO can even loan you some of ours.
Sign up for one or more two-hour shifts here: https://www.volunteersignup.org/8M7FR or contact Kitty Cahalan at kcahalan@caltech.edu for more information. We will reimburse for those who Uber or take public transportation, for drivers who pay for parking, and we will cover lunch for the 11 am - 1 pm shift.
Curious about the event? See their website here: https://www.cityofstem.org/
Kid Activities on Alumni Seminar Day
The Caltech Alumni Association is planning Seminar Day for Saturday, May 17, 2025. To assist attendees who want to bring younger children, CAA will be offering three hours of activities for elementary-aged children of Caltech alums. We are looking for two sets of volunteers willing to each host three 45 minute sessions of engaging hands-on activities for young learners that morning. Classroom management and support will be provided for by the Caltech Children's Center to allow volunteers to focus on running the activities. CTLO Outreach can help select age-appropriate activities if desired.
Interested volunteers should contact Kitty Cahalan, kcahalan@caltech.edu.
Lab Tours During Science Olympiad
Caltech is hosting the Southern California State Science Olympiad Competition on Saturday, April 12, 2025 on campus. Science Olympiad brings STEM education and access to elementary, middle, and high school students. The Caltech Science Olympiad Planning Team works with local schools to provide science competitions for students.
We are organizing lab tours for the participants after the competition is over (between 4-6pm), and we are looking for labs to host tours. If you'd like to volunteer, please register your interest in hosting a lab tour on April 12:
https://forms.gle/t4muAY8PvKuCF4Ej9
We really appreciate the help of your lab to make it happen!
Science Fair Judges Needed
Orange County Science and Engineering Fair
The 2025 OCSEF will be held on Wednesday, March 12 starting at 1 pm on Zoom. Judges will be able to review projects in their category online any time at their convenience between March 5 and March 10 to prepare for the student interviews on March 12. Interested judges should contact Arnold Shugarman at judges@ocsef.org or 714-206-6136.
Math and Science College Prep STEM Competition
Math and Science College Prep is having its STEM competition on June 2 and needs judges. Interested? Flyer with signup information here.
Off-Campus Classroom Requests
Bethany Christian School (Grades PreK-8): Pi-Day Presenters, Any STEM Topic
Bethany Christian School is hosting a Pi-Day event on Friday, March 14 for students to learn about Math/Science/Engineering. They are seeking Caltech volunteers willing to present their area of expertise (or anything science/math related) to three classes that morning. The school has preschool through 8th grade students. Class sizes are very small at BCS so each presentation would be no more than 15-20 students.
Please contact Jon Crabb at jonathancrabb@gmail.com if interested.
Aveson Leadership Academy (Grades 6-12): Any Science or Engineering Topics
A local middle school teacher at Aveson's middle/high school campus (now located at the Wilson Middle School campus on Del Mar and Madre) is seeking science/engineering graduate students, postdocs or faculty in any field to visit her classroom to speak to her STEM Lab elective class to share their experiences, as well as provide some fun demos. She's willing to work with the volunteer to help develop ideas or put together activities, as well.
If interested please contact Kitty Cahalan at kcahalan@caltech.edu to be put in touch with the teacher.
Eagle Rock Elementary School (Grades K-5): Earth Day Presenters
The STEM coach at Eagle Rock Elementary School is seeking volunteers to run environment-related activities for their Earth Day event on Saturday, April 5 from 9 am - noon.
Interested volunteers should contact Kitty Cahalan, kcahalan@caltech.edu.
CTLO Outreach Programs
We are always seeking volunteers for our ongoing programs!
Science Nights
We have more science nights coming up! Come join us at fun, off-campus family events held at local schools and parks in Pasadena and neighboring towns. No experience necessary, we even have activities you can borrow! We will supply rides and meals for all participants. Sign up here: https://www.volunteersignup.org/8M7FR (bookmark this page, as it is frequently updated!)
Visiting Scientists
A science teaching program at Madison Elementary. Caltechers teach 3rd-5th graders for 2-3 hours two times per month with a team of other Caltech students. Contact Kitty Cahalan at kcahalan@caltech.edu if you're interested in joining or learning more.
STEM Education and Outreach Club
Contact club president Alexis Cho at adcho@caltech.edu or sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/OutreachClub
Lab Tours
If you are ever willing to host a short (15-20 minute) tour of your lab for a small (10-15) group of middle or high schoolers visiting campus, please contact Kitty Cahalan at kcahalan@caltech.edu.
If you're interested in outreach, or want to know more, fill out this form (https://tinyurl.com/CTLOOutreachForm), and we will contact you to talk about the programs we have, or discuss your ideas.
Tutor Veterans at PCC
PCC is seeking volunteers who would like to tutor Veterans for mostly STEM topics. Most tutors work one-on-one with a student, with occasional tutor groups of two students. Tutors generally meet with their students once a week for an hour or two, depending on the student's needs and the tutor's availability, usually on Caltech's campus.
If interested, please contact Joseph Amador, VRC Success Coach, at jamador2@pasadena.edu
We Don't Just Do STEM Outreach!
We know that Caltech has people doing their studies and research in areas that are not considered STEM fields, and we'd love to have those of you this applies to do outreach, too! We also know all our students, staff and faculty have many other talents - are you an artist, photographer, writer, actor, dancer, athlete, musician? Do you have a hobby you'd like to share with people in our community? We can do outreach with that, too!
Please let Kitty Cahalan (kcahalan@caltech.edu) know if you're interested!
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Caltech Educational Outreach Office's programs run on volunteers! If you would like to join any of our programs, or if you have a program of your own that you'd like to bring to K-12 students, contact Kitty Cahalan, Assistant Director of Educational Outreach, at 626-395-2468 or kcahalan@caltech.edu.