Our History

Inspired by Science is a charitable organization established in 2013 by Deena and Mike Antiporda with their three young sons. The purpose of the organization is to promote STEM education at the elementary school level in hopes of inspiring students to pursue education and careers in STEM-related fields.

Inspired by Science began as a family organization, but has thrived with the help of many dedicated volunteers who have helped make the organization a success. Our main event is Inspired by Science Camp, held each summer on the campus of NMSU Carlsbad the first week of June. Our volunteers train and prepare for the science activities and ensure our young scientists have a safe, educational, and fun-filled experience.

The first Inspired by Science Camp (2014) broke attendance records for NMSU Carlsbad’s Community Education Program and each year since has served about 100 students. We love science and sharing it with children, lighting a spark that leads them to further exploration and strengthens their critical thinking skills.

Inspired by Science Today

The Carlsbad Community Foundation served as our fiscal sponsor from 2013 until January 2020 when Inspired by Science became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. As a public charity, the organization is able to accept tax deductible donations, is tax exempt in the State of New Mexico, and is governed by a Board of Directors.

The current members of the Board of Directors are:

Deena Antiporda, President
Michele Robertson, Vice President
Lisa Nesbit, Treasurer
Deborah Beard, Secretary
Therese Rodriguez, Member
Susan Siepel, Member

Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, Inspired by Science Camp 2020 was initially cancelled. However, we were approached about providing the camp online and we thought it was a great idea. Inspired by Science Camp 2020 was hosted virtually, June 22-26, 2020. Camp kits containing most of the necessary supplies were distributed to registered campers and videos for each activity were posted on this website. We still wanted to be a part of their STEM camp experience so we encouraged them to submit photos and comments, explaining the results of their experiments. We all still had a great time even if we couldn’t be together!

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.