About Us
Saturday Science began in 1987 as a community summer science program and was funded by Susquehanna University and the local Methodist Churches. Dr. Jack Holt of the Biology Department at Susquehanna University then began to offer Saturday morning programs through 1988 for grades K-8. The particular meetings occurred about once each month and lasted three hours per session. The program has followed this pattern ever since then. In 1993 Dr. Patricia Nelson, a Christa McAuliffe Fellow and Head of the Education Department at Susquehanna University, joined Saturday Science. Together, Jack and Pat received support from the Pennsylvania Space Grant, a NASA state based consortium whose mission is science education, for Saturday Science.
This funding allowed the program to continue with its monthly meetings. It also allowed the program to expand by providing support for university students and local community public school students to serve as helpers and contributors. Some money also became available for scholarships to support research by science students with an interest in education.
The staff at Saturday Science has since grown. Dr. Jennifer Elick, head of the Department of Earth and Environmental Science joined us in 1993, and Dr. Anne Reeves, the new Head of the Department of Education joined us in 2006. Brenda Bartlett, a former student at Susquehanna and a student worker at Saturday Science returned to the Saturday Science Staff as an in-service teacher in 2004. Currently, she teaches 5th grade at the Selinsgrove Area School District.
SATURDAY SCIENCE 2012
The year 2012 will mark the 19th year for the Saturday Science Program, an innovative series of hands-on activities for elementary and middle school students and their parents. The activities are held one or two Saturdays per month, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon (unless indicated otherwise), in the New Scicence Building at Susquehanna University.
The sessions are taught by Dr. Jack Holt of the Biology Department, Dr. Jennifer Elick of the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Dr. David McLaughlin and Dr. Anne Reeves of the Education Department, and Brenda Bartlett, in-service teacher in the Danville Area School District.
The activities that have been most successful are those in which parents work together with their children in teams. These units are moderately challenging. Therefore, we invite parents to join their children as partners or team members.
If you have any questions about Saturday Science, please contact us by email: satsci@susqu.edu or call (570) 372-4211.