The University of Mount Olive will host over 650 third graders from Wayne and Duplin County for a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fair, called STEM ON THE GREEN. The event will take place on Friday, October 29th from 9 AM to 2 PM on the campus lawn near Pope Wellness Center.

The event will feature over 40 interactive booths. Each activity will be linked to a concept within the third grade curriculum. Booths will include Ultimate Angry Birds, Egg-cellent Strength, Catapulting Pumpkins, Stand in a Bubble, Float an Action Figure, Oobleck, Flying Drones, Technology Metaphors, and many more. Several area businesses and organizations will have booths including Mt. Olive Pickle Co., Mount Olive Police Department, Mount olive Fire Department, Kinetic Minds, James Sprung Community College, and Wake Technical Community College. Students from each of UMO’s schools will be on hand to assist with the day’s events.

According to the event coordinator, Dr. Sara Lahman, the booths are designed to provide students with hands-on experience to allow them to understand associated concepts in a new light. “The STEM fair is a great opportunity to bring together local businesses, local schools, as well as our students and administration to show that we are cohesive in supporting education in this area of NC,” said Lahman. “We want students to get excited about these disciplines that can be viewed as difficult or boring. We want to show students what they can do with science, math, engineering, and technology – to show them connections in what they are learning in the classroom with everyday life.”

Participating schools will include North Duplin, Warsaw Primary School, Fremont, Northeast Northwest, and Wayne Christian Elementary Schools. For more information, contact Dr. Lahman at [email protected].