Inspired by Science Named Non-Profit of the Year
Inspired by Science will be honored as “Non-Profit of the Year” at the upcoming 2024 New Mexico Excellence in STEM Awards, commonly called “the STEMYS.” The STEMYS, which are hosted by the Air Force Research Lab Tech Engagement Office and Q Station, will be presented at a formal ceremony in Albuquerque on June 21, 2024.
“Kids love science, and we love opening their eyes to new possibilities,” says Inspired by Science’s President Deena Antiporda. “We are incredibly honored to accept this award and thank all of our supporters and volunteers for making Inspired by Science’s work possible!”
Inspired by Science was established in 2013 by Antiporda, her husband and children out of their kitchen, which continues to serve as a laboratory from time to time. It’s first event was a summer camp at what is now Southeast New Mexico College, which has continued to this day. Today, Inspired by Science also offers workshops and events throughout the year, held at the National Cave and Karst Research Institute and the Carlsbad Public Library. The cost to participate in its events is low thanks to grants and donations.
“Engaging kids with fun, hands-on projects has been our winning formula. Our goal has been to make STEM education accessible to all students.”
Inspired by Science achieved 501c3 status in 2020 and is governed by a Board of Directors. One of the organization’s near-term goals is to identify a location to expand its operations and possibly offer on-site workshops.
Check out this KRQE story about the STEMYS
What’s Coming Up Next!
Keep watching our website and Facebook for upcoming workshops!
Recent STEM Events
Inspired by Science Camp ’24–Artesia
We got to spend three afternoons doing hands-on activities with Artesia students. This will be our 3rd year doing a camp in Artesia. It is completely funded by the PY Foundation and held in the Bulldog Training Center inside the Artesia Public Schools Admin Building. We many of the same activities that were completed during our Carlsbad camp. The young scientists and engineers were very creative with their projects!
Inspired by Science Camp ’24
Our big annual summer camp since 2014! We hosted 100 campers on the campus of Southeast New Mexico College June 3rd-6th for lots of STEM fun! We experimented with electric racers, hoop gliders, brush bots, elephant toothpaste, Sharpie tie dye shirts, among other things. We also set up a Glow Lab for the campers! Inside, they made glow-in-the-dark slime, key chains, glow tubes, and wrote with invisible ink pens. They also got to see some rocks that fluoresce under black lights. National Cave and Karst Research Institute provided activities related to caving during one of the evenings for our campers and families to enjoy. Camp week ended with a Family STEM Night that featured many area businesses who brought along activities for families. We also had our Glow Lab in operation. It was a great week as always!
Drone Flight ’24 Workshops
We had an overwhelming response to our drone workshops so we created two of them! It was so amazing to watch young minds at work while they problem-solved and adjusted their drones for better flights. They took their drones home with extra supplies so they could continue to experiment and learn.
Loving Elementary STEM
We got to spend the afternoon with Loving Elementary 4th graders, doing Elephant Toothpaste and making lava lamps. Then we stayed for their STEM Night later that evening.
Mini STEM Workshop–Snap Circuits
Kids got to experiment with their own Snap Circuit set, building different projects and figuring out how electricity works in safe way.
DaVinci STEM Workshop
For this Family Lab Partner workshop, we gathered adults and kids together to build new creations out of a ball launcher kit and a rubber band car kit. Check out the great combinations these engineers created!
Online Microscope Workshop
In November, we mailed out kits to youth participating in our Online Microscope Workshop. The kits contained a pocket microscope along with various samples to view and supplies to make Epsom salt crystals. We also included supplies for some candy science–soaking M&Ms until the Ms floated off! From the photos submitted to us, we can see that our young scientists were hard at work with their microscopes!
Library STEM Club
We had great chemistry and physics fun at our most recent Carlsbad Public Library STEM Club Presentation! The kids put on lab coats and safety glasses before witnessing elephant toothpaste and balloons inflating with carbon dioxide. They also played with ping pong balls and balloons hovering over a blow dryer and were wowed by water suspended in an upside down jar! We had so much fun!
Ocotillo Elementary School STEM Night
A lot of things were glowing that night as we turned a classroom into a Glow Lab! Kids played with energy sticks, drew pictures with light and made glow in the dark key chains. We had a great time at Ocotillo Elementary!
Solar Eclipse Watch Party
Carlsbad, NM was able to witness the ring of fire during our recent annular solar eclipse and we were at the National Cave and Karst Research Institute to help families safe view this amazing event. Over 400 people attended our watch party! Families were able to build solar cars, view the eclipse through a telescope fitted with a solar filter, and participate in other activities brought in by exhibitors. We even had food trucks onsite! What an amazing phenomenon to watch with so many people!
Rocket Launch Workshop
Rockets were soaring in September! Participants built their rockets from scratch, let them dry overnight, and came back the next afternoon to launch! Basic rocket building was the focus of this workshop. We went over safety rules, also, because they got to take the rockets home. We hope they will get to launch them again!
Artesia Camp ’23
We had a 3-day camp in Artesia during July. The kids had a blast making propeller cars, illusion spinners, ball launchers, scribble bots, and ice cream. Central Valley Electric brought out a bucket truck and helped us with our Egg Zipline! Campers built a pod to carry their egg down the zipline and also a landing pad to protect the egg during landing.
Carlsbad Camp ’23
This is our 8th summer camp to be hosted at Southeast New Mexico College (formerly NMSU-Carlsbad). It lasted four mornings and we concluded with a STEM Night, inviting area organizations and companies to set up tables with activities for families. During the camp itself, we made propeller cars, illusion wheels, scribble bots, ice cream, slime, sundials, viewed the sun through a special telescope, toured the college’s Nursing Facility, and had an egg-celent time doing an Egg Zipline! The National Cave and Karst Research Institute also hosted a program during an evening of camp week, teaching the campers and families about using a compass and how that relates to caving.
Inspired by Science Cup
In April, we had exciting air-powered dragster races! Participants designed and shaped their dragster out of balsa wood and then hit the track! It was amazing to see the different designs our teams came up with. It was our second Family Lab Partner event at the National Cave and Karst Research Institute.
Hydraulic Arm STEM Challenge Workshop
In March, we had our very first workshop at a new location–the National Cave and Karst Research Institute located at the Cascades here in Carlsbad, New Mexico. It is a fabulous space for us to host larger workshops! Our most recent one was a workshop involving the construction of a hydraulic arm and then learning how to operate it in order to compete in four challenges. This event had another “first”–it was the first event where we introduced our new concept called “Family Lab Partner”. Youth get signed up to participate with one other family member (who is 18 + years old) to work on the project as a team. It was a great success and it was so much fun to watch so many families working and learning together!
Monthly STEM Activities at Carlsbad Prep Academy
Every month, we meet with the students at Carlsbad Prep Academy and work on fun STEM activities. We’ve done Coke Mentos geysers, elephant toothpaste, mini lava lamps, balloon cars, butter in a jar, crystals, and much more! We enjoy our time with such amazing little scientists!
Community Lab Partners
Kids need hands-on STEM education more than ever. Our mission is to provide that opportunity to as many kids as possible. We depend on donations for Inspired by Science to be successful! All donors are what we call our Community Lab Partners. Click here to see the full Community Lab Partner List which includes many local individuals, businesses, and organizations who support our effort to promote science among elementary school aged young scientists! Want to help? Donate today to become one of our Community Lab Partners!
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About our events: Any reference to camps on our site refers to multi-session youth programs that may be at a community location or hosted virtually on our Web site. Inspired by Science does not host overnight events.