Thanks for your comment! We hold events in the regions where the students live in order to continue to impact their communities while network with STEM professionals who are active in their communities. We also have mentors matched to schools to help students learn more about STEM and help them with their career goals and opportunities. The participants are either in middle or high school and are elected by their peers, but they submit an application each year as a part of the process. Each participant is elected for a year. To help students become effective voices in their communities, we have mentors matched with their schools, we also have advisers to help shepherd the students, and take the students on trips to network and learn more about STEM fields and careers. 

Thanks Jeremy, it is great to hear about the mentoring component, that seems really important. I also think it's really interesting that participants are elected by their peers, and have to be reelected each year. What have you found in terms of continuity of participants? Are there any links between length of participation and the impacts you see?

We have found that for those who continue to participate, which is good number of them, that their plans improve from their first year to their second year. We also see an increased dedication to the position, more recognition of and participation in leadership opportunities, and they connect more with the community in their second year. We have seen participants impact the community more as they gained more experience. 

I appreciate your thoughtful comment! Thanks for posting. We match mentors to their schools and through them and advisers, we hold events in the areas where these students live. Our mentors and advisers train students on communication skills, along with taking them on field trips and networking trips to connect with STEM professionals. We are building an alumni network in Arizona and hope to expand the alumni network to all our CSO regions. We expect that the alumni network will grow as the program matures and progresses!

Many of the activities that CSO's engage in are local science fairs, networking events, field trips to places which use STEM fields as a part of their daily work activities, and help companies host local community events that highlight STEM careers. They are volunteer students and often work as CSO clubs, with help from mentors and advisers who are matched to their school. They can focus on whichever STEM area they would like to, such as robotics, engineering, or whatever it may be. Impact for our CSO project is primarily focused on the increased participation of youth participants, which will then positively impact the communities that they work or live in. But, we are driving towards the goal that CSO participants will become more involved with local businesses and other interested parties or partners, which will both increase CSO participation while benefiting the community.

Thank you! A lot of hard work went into it and we are glad that you liked it! Please let me know if you have any questions!

We are seeking both state-level and national-level partners in business and in government and we do have business and government partners in states such as Arizona, Michigan, and Oregon, as well as partners at the national level. The grant's outcomes and research will help us integrate our CSO clubs into a national ecosystem of STEM-minded participants, advisers and collaborators. It will also continue to build on our foundation of partnerships in multiple states. The program has received regional funding across the country, which is making the program sustainable. We also note that in Arizona, schools provide a small activity fee to help offset the costs of the clubs.