Mission and Goals

George Mason University’s Global Learning Institute provides educational programming tailored to advance students’ goals, objectives, and skills while familiarizing them with Mason’s expertise in today’s most in-demand subjects. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects are some of the strongest academic units at George Mason University, and the GLI is proud to partner with the College of Science to bring these lessons to students beyond our campus through the 2015 Summer STEM Research Program.

Program Overview

George Mason University’s Global Learning Institute was founded in 2012 to support the university’s long held goal of being a “global convener of ideas with impact”. This is particularly true for Mason’s College of Science which injects traditional science education with interdisciplinary scientific domains, resulting in trailblazing students able to tackle today’s most challenging problems. During this two week program, students will be engaged in hands-on, experiential and lab-based intellectual experience in biology, physics, chemistry and forensic sciences. They will work closely with STEM faculty members from the STEM Accelerator team during (10) two-hour modules (two modules per day) as a team. Along with their contentbased activities, students will collaborate and work in teams to build a design challenge.

Course Requirements

1) Build a Sea Perch ROV, an aquatic rover developed by the Department of Navy to promote STEM among students from 8th – university level – building the unit will require development of basic lab skills. Understanding how the unit works will be the subject of the Physics of the Sea Perch discussions. These discussions will include hands-on lab exercises that examine fundamental physics concepts essential to the building and use of the Sea Perch.

2) Conduct a biological (aquatic microbiology and ecology) and chemical (environmental chemistry) investigation of the ecosystem. Experimentation will include field study as well as in-lab essential exercises that will develop skills required to analyze biological and chemical data collected.

3) Students will complete a pre- and post- assessment as well as write a reflection of the lab experience at the end of the week. These products will be used for study and to improve the experience for future students.