By donating to the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) Gift Fund, you are enabling a unique opportunity to expose and educate the next generation of engineers. Funds will go directly to resources for the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) initiative, supporting numerous programs and opportunities geared towards middle school and high school students.
UNH-IOL, High School Internship Program
Each year the UNH-IOL recruits bright and ambitious students interested in networking and data communications for the established High School Internship Program. The internship which is designed for Juniors who are entering their Senior year of High School is a 7 week paid program that is solely funded by sponsors. The 2014 internship received 52 applications and with funding from sponsors the UNH-IOL was able to accept eight interns into the program. This year the UNH-IOL is happy to announce that the internship program will be entering its 10th year. The UNH-IOL will be holding a special recognition ceremony during the 2015 internship ceremony. This event will be held on August 20th at 2:00pm. This event will provide an opportunity for all UNH-IOL internship alumni, sponsors, family and the community to see how the program has grown and how it impacts the participants involved.
Summer Youth Programs
The UNH-IOL works very closely with UNH’s Summer Youth Programs. The UNH-IOL participates in the Summer Youth Programs by donating time and knowledge to help teach students basic networking skills, and design fun hands-on activities that sparks interest to the students participating in these programs. Among the many programs offered by UNH, the UNH-IOL participates in the Tech Camp and Engineerista programs. During these programs students have the opportunity to visit the UNH-IOL, tour the facility, and participate in fun hands-on activities. UNH now offers a Techventures program is designed for returning Tech Camp campers and new campers entering grades 9 - 10. The strands are designed to be advanced versions of the Tech Camp strand. Campers will be able to choose two different week-long strands.
School programs
The UNH-IOL works with many local schools by visiting classroom and talking with students about our STEM opportunities. Schools also have the opportunity to visit the UNH-IOL for a tour with demos and hands on activities. In addition, the UNH-IOL can also provide educational workshops with hands on activities for students and teachers. This past year, UNH-IOL students and staff developed curriculum for computer science/coding enrichment courses to middle school and high school students. At one of the schools, we piloted a program where we taught the teacher so they would be able to sustain the program on their own after our initial 8 weeks of lessons.
In addition to the above, the UNH-IOL partners with Oyster River High School to hold an industry internship program for students to receive school credit. During the program, students take part in interesting and informative hands-on activities, work one-on-one with UNH-IOL engineers and college students and get out of the classroom to learn in a fun and exciting environment.
UNH-IOL Scholarship Program
In addition to the High School Internship, donations can go into the UNH-IOL’s scholarship program fund for current employees at the UNH-IOL. This program promotes academic achievement and a high level of performance. In order to qualify for this scholarship, UNH-IOL employees must be a current student of UNH in good academic standing (GPA 3.0 or higher) with tenure of at least six months, demonstrating exceptional conduct and achievement while at the lab.
How your organization will benefit from this program
The UNH-IOL has efforts to provide many companies with future employees. All of these companies have one specific thing in common. They need to hire new employees each year to fulfill fill the pipeline of engineers.
Giving today will provide you with the next generation of engineers. Donating is simple, visit the UNH-IOL website and Make a Gift!