Over 300 graduate students came together to offer this year’s annual Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) conference, putting in countless hours of volunteer work to host middle and high school students from across the state for a day of hands-on learning experiences on April 5.
A group of 37 graduate students, two postdocs, and a faculty advisor comprised the organizing committee, while nearly 200 graduate students volunteered to run workshops, 50 served as participants’ buddies, 20 gave tours of their labs, and 10 ran booths running science demonstrations.
Altogether, this group supported a total of 320 seventh to 10th grade students from across New York state, coming from as far away as Queens to participate in this science, technology, engineering, and math- (STEM) focused event.
“Beyond the incredible diversity of science that participants get to experience, I think that what makes EYH impactful is the connections made between grad students and the kids,” said Anna Ringuette, chemistry and chemical biology doctoral candidate and conference chair. “Every year we get feedback about how much kids loved their buddy or their workshop leader and how exciting it is to see a scientist that looks like them. Getting to imagine yourself as a scientist feels really powerful.”
Simon Wheeler for Cornell University
Cornell’s 2025 Bouchet Society inductees. Back row (left to right): Don Long, Andrea Robinson, Salma Rebhi and her son, Zhuang Han, and Aspen Omapang. Front row (left to right): Jamila Walida Simon, Marguerite Pacheco, Libby Indermaur, and Belen Sotomayor
