- Utah State University hosts a STEM camp as part of the GEAR UP program, funded by the National Science Foundation.
- All activities are aimed at growing interest in higher education, especially those with family members who did not attend college.
LOGAN — A group of middle school students from the Cache and Salt Lake valleys is taking part in a two-day camp at Utah State University. The camp is mostly focused on kids who may become first-generation college grads for their families.
USU biochemistry professor Ryan Jackson was giving the group of 29 kids a brief introduction to gene editing Tuesday, showing them how bacteria can be turned bioluminescent like jellyfish.
"This is how bacteria gain antibiotic resistance," Jackson explained. "But scientists have been leveraging this to make products that we would call natural products, like sometimes food dyes or food flavors are actually made by a gene getting put into bacteria, and then the bacteria make that for you."
The lesson is one of many the students will have during the camp. All of the activities are aimed at getting them interested in going to college, with a special emphasis on kids whose family members might not have done so themselves.
"I'd say the No.1 reason is to tear down any barriers that students might have in their own minds that suggest to themselves that they're not made for college," Jackson said. "The whole goal is to help students get to college and then succeed once they're there."
Even if the kids end up not having an interest in science, the hope is that they'll see how a college degree can help open more opportunities. The program, called GEAR UP, stands for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs. It's funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation.
Miles Fetzer, a seventh grader from American Preparatory Academy in West Valley, said he enjoyed the science lesson.
"I think this is really cool," Fetzer said. "It's really interesting what you can learn with this stuff."
At the same time, he said he'll take a bit more time before deciding on college. He's still young.
"There's so many things that I've thought about doing," Fetzer said. "There's a few colleges that like stand out there, but I'm not sure."
