OU hosts children's summer camps focused on politics, science

After the spring semester ended at OU, the campus remained busy with a myriad of summer camps inviting elementary and middle-school students to learn about politics, science and technology.

Science and Technology

BP, a global oil and gas company, sponsors Discovering Engineering Via Adventure in Science, a weeklong program geared toward encouraging women to participate in engineering, according to the College of Engineering website.

Women constitute 51 percent of the American population and 46 percent of our labor force, only 9 percent of today’s practicing engineers are women, according to the College of Engineering website.

BP also offers an engineering program for young men who are interested in the field, called BP Engineering Academy, according to the College of Engineering website. This program is geared toward minority and first-generation students, but it is open to all students who have an interest in engineering, according to the website.

p>OU also offers the Sooner Flight Academy, which offers aviation-centered programs for children as young as 6, and as old as 18, according to the Academy website. The programs are tiered by ages, with varying subjects, according to the Academy website.

OU’s summer science and technology academies host more than 200 students each summer, with a focus on science, technology, engineering and math, said Holly Mills, Program Development Specialist of OU’s pre-collegiate programs.

“These camps give students a real view of college life and what would be expected of them in the future as students at the University of Oklahoma,” Mills said. “The students make great friends and have lasting impressions of their counselors and faculty members.”

Politics

In the world of politics and citizenship, OU is home to Girls State, a camp sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary.

Meteorology sophomore Ashley Sebree acted as a counselor at Girls State this summer, having been to the camp the summer before her senior year of high school.

Students run for offices and get elected to offices by their fellow Girls State campers, making banners with slogans and holding a mock government, Sebree said.

“It is a truly enriching experience," Sebree said. "You come out with more knowledge, friendships and the feeling that you can do anything you put your mind to."

This year, Girls State hosted speakers such as former Gov. George Nigh, former Lt. Gov. Jari Askins and Gov. Mary Fallin who spoke to the campers about politics, Sebree said.

“It was great having Fallin here, considering she is the first female governor of Oklahoma,” Sebree said. “It just shows that women can do anything.”

Meredith Everitt

Meredith is a former staff member of The Oklahoma Daily who worked as Staff Writer.