From MIT Admissions:

Happy New Year! I hope that this email finds you in the best of spirits and energized for opportunities ahead to help make MIT an even better place.

In an effort to improve our outreach to Black high school students and help build the pipeline of talented young people to MIT, we are inviting BAMIT members to help support the ACT-SO program by the NAACP. ACT-SO (Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics) is a nationally recognized NAACP program that supports high-achieving high school students by pairing them with mentors to develop original projects and performances for regional and national competitions.

To be clear, we’re looking for BAMIT volunteers to mentor students, either in-person or virtually, on STEM projects that will be presented at the ACT-SO regional competitions and hopefully qualify for the national competition at the NAACP Convention this summer in Chicago. The time commitment is flexible: from a single check-in to full project guidance from January to April (or through July if desired). We intend to support the Brockton and Boston chapters of the NAACP, as the students often struggle to find STEM mentors for their projects.

In particular, they have asked for mentors in the following subject areas, but other areas of expertise, including the arts are welcome).

• Architecture
• Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science
• Astrophysics
• Earth Sciences
• Physics
• Engineering

This is a great chance to inspire the next generation, help build research skills, and potentially support a pipeline to MIT. If you are interested in volunteering or have questions, please reach out to Trinidad Carney, Associate Director for Outreach at [email protected]. We hope to find 10 volunteers by January 31.

Graciously,

Quinton McArthur

Sr. Advisor for Community Engagement