Outreach & Service

Mission statement: The Outreach & Service committee aims to bridge the gap between the Duke higher education community and the broader Triangle community, and to engage with individuals from diverse backgrounds and age groups. 

Current members: Jenna Merenstein (Chair, jenna dot merenstein at duke dot edu), Nitisha Desai, Sweta Srivas, Andie Zang-Felix, Mara Cowen, Maria Jantz

CURRENT GOALS

• Identify more service-oriented activities (current focus is heavier on outreach)
• Extend outreach to Durham public schools (elementary & high school)
• Extend outreach to community adults of all ages
• Create a database of current postdoc volunteers for outreach & service events

ONGOING INITIATIVES AND RESOURCES

Science Day at the North Carolina School of Science and Math (NCSSM)

NCSSM is a public boarding school for North Carolina’s best and brightest Junior and Senior high school students. During Science Day, selected postdocs are able to share their research and engage these bright students by giving a 10 min presentation followed by 5 min of Q&A.

STEM Night at the Durham Museum of Life & Science 

A science fair type of event where DUPA hosts a table, twice per year. We provide science demonstrations and examples. There are no curriculum requirements and all topics/fields are welcome.

Durham Center for Senior Life: Community Engagement Talks

The DCSL aims to “enrich the lives of Durham seniors 55+ by promoting healthy, active, and independent lifestyles”. DUPA Outreach aims to contribute to this goal by a hosting a series of TED-style / interactive presentations that connect your research to everyday life or mainstream media topics. The format will be a series of in-person talks hosted in an auditorium setting at the DCSL. 2-3 postdocs will team up for a 1-hr. time slot for presentations, activities, and Q&A.