Science Saturday Showcases SUNY Plattsburgh, Miner Institute Science Programs

SUNY Plattsburgh science faculty teamed up with Miner Institute to welcome area students interested in careers in STEM during the third annual Science Saturday at the Joseph C. Burke Education and Research Center Sept. 6.

Rain didn’t deter students from Beekmantown, Chazy, Northeastern Clinton Central, Peru, Plattsburgh and Seton schools who turned out see how robots work, learn about astronomy, soil, and animal and environmental research among other areas in biology, earth and environmental science and physics.

“This event is a great opportunity for middle- and high-school students to learn about career opportunities in science and to learn about what types of programs exist at SUNY Plattsburgh,” said Rachel Dutil, public relations and marketing coordinator at Miner Institute.

SUNY Plattsburgh has a long-established relationship with Miner Institute, dating back decades through the Applied Environmental Science Program, a semester-long residency experience where students study field and lab courses in an alternative, day-long format that utilizes the Institute’s 8,000 acres of forests and fields and their extensive laboratory and computer facilities.

Resource to Region

Activities at Science Saturday, held both inside and under a tent on the grounds, included forensics, hands-on soil health demonstrations, learning about technology used in Miner Institute’s dairy research program, coding in science, physics and robotics and more.

“The mission of SUNY Plattsburgh is to be a resource for the region,” said Dr. Meg Pearson, dean of arts and sciences at the university. The event at Miner is a tangible way to demonstrate that mission, bringing programs at both Miner and SUNY Plattsburgh to students who are considering these careers in a way “that’s friendly and interesting, showing them what these programs have to offer,” she said.

In addition to Miner Institute faculty and staff, members of SUNY Plattsburgh’s faculty included Dr. Ed Romanowicz, professor, chair and director of the Center for Earth and Environmental Science, Dr. Ken Podolak, professor and co-chair of physics, Lisabeth Kissner, lecturer and director of the Northcountry Planetarium, Dr. Neil Buckley, associate to the dean and professor in biological sciences, Dr. Colin Fuss, assistant professor in CEES, and Stephen Kramer, adjunct lecturer in CEES as well as director of lab studies at Miner, among others.

Among the Miner Institute faculty and staff on hand were research scientists Sarah Morrison and Laura Klaiber as well as President Heather Dann.

Students in Attendance

Different programs at Science Saturday were also represented by students in represented programs. Northcountry Planetarium and the SUNY Plattsburgh student astronomy club, known as the Galilean Society, were well-represented as was the robotics program.

Beatrix Tierney, a senior robotics major from Plattsburgh, appreciated Science Saturday because it gave them the chance to showcase the robots program, what they referred to as “the best of all worlds — physics, computer science and engineering.”

“Our program is almost like an engineering program, which prepares us to be industry-ready,” they said. “We’re learning on the fly. It’s the best thing for robotics. It’s so hands-on; you never get bored. You’re always working on something, whether you’re coding, creating, applying what you learn to real life.”

— Story, Photos by Associate Director of Communications Gerianne Downs