The Rotary Club of Nordonia Hills School partnered with Nordonia High School to present the 4th Annual STEM Event, celebration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. This event brought together students, local vendors, and professionals in the field to enhance students’ understanding of the possibilities of future careers. It is the Club’s desire that this event would inspire the next generation of thinkers, problem solvers, and innovators through hands-on activities and exposure to various careers. 
Over 25 vendors with 67 guests from all over Northeast Ohio were present to show students how their business or career is part of the STEM education program. Traditional displays by Eaton, Minority Tech Alliance, Swagelok, and Air and Space Force demonstrated hands-on activities and projects that they work with every day. Other vendors, not necessarily associated with STEM, such as Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Tinker’s Creek Watershed Partners, CropKing, Inc. and Ohio Department of Transportation also demonstrated their work and activities to encourage students to other possible career opportunities. 
Companies and organizations set up exhibits showcasing the latest advancements in STEM. Demonstrations include virtual reality experiences, robots, and environmentally sustainable technologies. These exhibits allowed students to have the chance to interact with professionals, gaining valuable advice and mentorship.Throughout the day, approximately 470 students visited the STEM center to interact directly with the vendors present. However, the highlight of the day was the Robotics Challenge. Where 14 students pared in four groups, formed teams to design, build, and program robots that competed in various tasks. This challenge was able to encourage teamwork, technical skills, and creative problem-solving.
The next day, a Science Teacher at the High School forwarded an email to the Principal, Louise Teringo, from one of the parents of a student. The parent said: “Thank you for arranging the STEM Day for the students. I imagine my daughter is pretty quiet in class and wanted you to know that she walked away from that day genuinely interested in several of the fields that she learned about. We typically don't get much out of her when it comes to "how was your day?" but on that day, she had a lot to say about potential careers. It led to great discussion about pros and cons of different types of work, work/life balance, pay, etc. Thanks for facilitating this day.” The Rotary Club of Nordonia Hills and the Nordonia Schools regularly partner in many programs throughout the year such as recognizing Students of the Month, providing Scholarship, sponsoring students to attend the RYLA program and the 3rd grade dictionary project. For more information about our STEM Event, please contact Lateef Saffore, Chair at lysaffore@gmail.com.
