STEM Conference at Tufts 10/19/19

The application window for the 2019 STEM Conference has closed and selected students have been notified. Thank you for your interest! DO YOU WANT TO: Learn more about careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math? Meet students from area towns? Attend workshops that you choose? Enjoy a catered lunch? Spend the day at Tufts University in Grafton? Win free “stuff"?


If you answered yes to these questions, then you should consider applying to attend the

Blackstone Valley STEM Conference

on Saturday, October 19, 2019

at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Grafton  

(7th and 8th grade spots are limited for this FREE conference. You will need to provide your own transportation. Sorry, students who attended last year are not eligible to attend again.)


Submit an online application no later than Wednesday, September 11th.
STEM Conference Application


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***STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math***


Check out the video that the 2012 participants made below:
STEM Kids 2012 From the 10/26/18 DMS Newsletter:

Douglas Middle School Students Attend the 11th Annual Blackstone Valley STEM Conference at Tufts

Attendees: Matt Freeman, Hunter Claflin, Chloe MacDonald, Sam Yanis, John Kearney, Taylor Lundquist, Jordan Provost, and Veronica Martinez (Not pictured: Meghan Moulder)


On Saturday, October 20th, 2018, nine Douglas 7th and 8th graders joined Mrs. GravesonPayne and 100 middle school students from across the Blackstone Valley at the 11th Annual STEM Kids Conference, held at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in North Grafton, MA. The purpose of the conference was to inspire students to pursue career opportunities in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), while also giving them a taste of college life.


Students each participated in three workshops out of seven available to them: Building a Military Ration, Candy Bar Battle (Physics/Designing Composite Materials), Clinical Pathology Lab Detective Work, Electrophysics of Music, Exploring the Intersection of Veterinary Medicine and Engineering, Architectural Design Challenge, and Why You Should Think Like a Hacker. In the afternoon, students enjoyed a keynote presentation from Julia Paxson, an Associate Professor of Biology at Holy Cross, who discussed the science of regeneration and answered lots of great student-generated questions.


​Concurrently, parents also participated in presentations about early college planning. The day concluded with a high-energy Van de Graaff generator demonstration by Mr. Macdonald Andrews, Senior Principal Raytheon Engineer and Douglas resident. The program was organized and funded by the Blackstone Valley Education Foundation and the Tufts/Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. Funding was also provided by Homefield Credit Union and Southwick’s Zoo.


Douglas students sitting in the front row eagerly awaiting the opening presentation by the Dean of Tufts


Taylor, John, and a student from another school in the Blackstone Valley testing the listening instrument they designed in the Exploring the Intersection of Veterinary Medicine and Engineering workshop


Hunter practicing his technique for growing bacteria on a petri dish in the Clinical Pathology Lab workshop


Taylor and Meghan test food sample characteristics in the Military Ration workshop


Chloe learns about composite materials in the Candy Bar workshop


Jordan and her group begin testing the strength of a candy bar in the Candy Bar workshop


Matt displays his structure in the Architectural Design workshop


Sam, John, and Veronica work on their building prototypes in the Architectural Design workshop


Everyone enjoyed lunch!


At the end of the day, the Douglas students were still smiling and enthusiastically learning during the keynote presentation


Student Reviews:


The best part of the conference was making new friends and also being treated older. I also liked having the opportunity to try learning different fields of STEM.


I thought it was very fun and I loved going.


I enjoyed making new friends all while learning interesting science (lunch was good).