Research experience opens doors for aspiring engineers, scientists

An Arizona State University education outreach effort that immerses high school students in cutting-edge research is marking its 20th year with notable successes.

Teens involved in the Southwest Center for Education and the Natural Environment (SCENE) Research Experiences for High School Students work for six to eight months in ASU labs with senior scientists, engineers, graduate and undergraduate students.

They get a first-hand look at how aspiring scientists and engineers progress through the ranks toward careers in the fields.

In the past few years, SCENE students have continued to win numerous top awards at the Arizona State Science and Engineering Fair  and the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair competitions.

They’ve also been recognized with awards from the Arizona governor's office, the Society for Technical Communication, the ASM Materials Education Foundation, the Association for Women in Science, and the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marines.

One of the program’s mentors is Nathan Newman, the Lamonte H. Lawrence Professor in Solid State Science in the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, one of ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

Newman and SCENE student Jean Juang, a recent graduate of Corona del Sol High School in Tempe, were interviewed recently on a TV news program. They talked about what the SCENE program is doing to spark teen’s interest in becoming professional scientists and engineers, and how it’s preparing them for a college education.