Calling all forensic investigators!---We’ve come across a crime scene mystery and need your help to crack the case! As part of this program, participants will work in teams to gather evidence as they unravel the science and mathematics behind crime scene clues like fingerprints and footprints, DNA, handwriting, and more! At the end of the week, teams will analyze their evidence, make deductions and propose their ideas and theories to solve the mystery.

Design, tinker, build, test, then do it again! In teams, participants will engage in several hands-on activities as they explore the engineering design process through electrical, chemical, and biomedical engineering. Students will design, build, and race boats, make their electrical board games, and experience and test the principles of force and motion through a week-long Rube Goldberg machine-building project.

Ever wonder how science can help you “Go for Gold'' at your next sporting event? This program examines how STEM concepts can be applied to various sports and help athletes perform their best! Questions explored include: How does a diver minimize their splash and maximize their score? How is sports equipment made to accommodate forces and keep our athletes safe? How can athletes optimize projectile motion during gameplay? The underlying STEM principles for the sports you know and love will be explored along the way. Students will engineer an archer’s bow, test cycling gears, and create and race their mechanical swimmer!

Calling all future medical students! This program features a series of practical, hands-on explorations (including dissections, modeling, and simulations) centered on human anatomy and physiology topics addressing the circulatory, respiratory, visual, and auditory systems. Students will even do some surgical simulations and engage in challenging bioengineering projects which apply engineering principles and practices to the structure and function of the human body.

TALENT Ignite Summer Entrepreneurship Program

The TALENT (Total Applied Learning for Entrepreneurs) Ignite Summer Camp teaches students from 6th-9th grade the fundamental concepts of entrepreneurship, to equip students with the necessary mindset and skills to develop their own product ideas. The concepts taught include: ideation, branding, market research, pitching, and much more. Modules are a mixture of lecture and activity-based learning; this interactive approach promotes active participation from students, encouraging deeper understanding of the material. The camp will culminate with a pitch competition judged by experienced entrepreneurs. The TALENT Ignite Summer Program will be separated into two age-specific groups: 6th-7th grade and 8th-9th grade. This will ensure an age-appropriate maturity level in each group.

This camp is led by student facilitators from the IMSA TALENT (Total Applied Learning for Entrepreneurs) program who are experienced and knowledgeable guides in the creation of marketable ideas.  For more information about this program contact Steve Goldblatt at sgoldblatt@imsa.edu

Summer 2023 Program offerings:

1. TALENT Ignite – June 26-30, 2023 from 9am to 12pm (no lunch) at the IMSA Innovation Center on the Aurora campus, register here.
2. TALENT Ignite – July 10-14, 2023 from 9am to 12pm (no lunch) at the IMSA Innovation Center on the Aurora campus, register here.

Maker Summer Programs

Join us the as we set about an exploration of Computer Aided Design (CAD), 3D Printing, Electronics, and an Introduction to Arduinos! This week will be packed full of various projects that highlight skills we will learn and grow each day! Learn to CAD your own trinket, model, or project, and then make that design come to life as a 3D printed object! We will also learn what microcontrollers like an Arduino are capable of before we try our hand with some simple electronics. This will be an awesome week that will give you a great jumpstart on making and skills you can use for many years to come!  Questions contact in2@imsa.edu.

Summer 2023 Program offerings:

1. Maker Summer Program – June 26-30, 2023 from 9am to 12pm (no lunch) at the IMSA Innovation Center on the Aurora campus, register here.
2. Maker Summer Program – July 10-14, 2023 from 9am to 12pm (no lunch) at the IMSA Innovation Center on the Aurora campus, register here.