Tracy Halmi, M.A.

When I arrived at Behrend, I decided to use my passion for chemistry to teach science beyond our campus. Public outreach is an umbrella term for a variety of activities by universities aimed at promoting public awareness (and understanding) of science and making informal contributions to science education. I participate in outreach in two distinct ways. First, I create and present hands-on activities and chemical demonstrations for school-aged children. My most recent creation is Science Story Time. Science Story Time engages the youngest of scientists – preschoolers age 3-5. These young scientists are invited to campus with their parents for a one hour session that includes reading a children’s book then participating in science-related hands-on activities. Science Story Time is truly a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) program since the activities and demonstrations are built upon children's literature. In conjunction with the Yahn planetarium, the pilot program debuted on February 22, 2017 and is now on-going. The pre-K children and their parents have embraced the program and I’m happy to report it is a sold-out smash hit. The second aspect of my scholarly activity allows me to disseminate information about the programs I have developed to colleagues who wish to establish similar events in their communities. Through my work with the American Chemical Society (ACS), I have been able to share my creativity and outreach efforts beyond a local audience. I became involved in creating themes, activities, and programming for National Chemistry Week (NCW) starting at a local level but also for a national audience. I have organized and participated in NCW events at the Millcreek Mall, The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, the San Diego Zoo and the California Science Center to name just a few. These events and science related programming have reached thousands of youth during NCW. The overall reach is hard to quantify, but I’m extremely proud of my programs and the number of children it has inspired. My programs have been recognized nationally with four ChemLuminary awards, an ACS award recognizing excellence in chemistry outreach.