November 19, 2010 — More than 100 high school students of color from Knoxville and Oak Ridge who have accomplished high achievement in math and science are currently experiencing first hand East Tennessee organizations focused on technology, including the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The educational program -- titled STEM for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics -- is sponsored by the Knoxville Area Urban League and enables these students to tour East Tennessee technology venues and meet with employees who work for these organizations.
"In September of each year we induct students of color with a 3.0 grade point average or above and one of our goals is to expose them to career areas such as science, technology, engineering and mathematics," said Donna Worthy, who manages the Knoxville Area Urban League's STEM program. "As we continue through our program year from September through May, the students have an opportunity to participate in various workshops and activities involving different career areas."
During their visit to ORNL, students toured the National Center for Computational Sciences, the Spallation Neutron Source and the historic Graphite Reactor during their visit to ORNL.
ORNL is managed by UT-Battelle for the Department of Energy's Office of Science.