Get involved in science fairs!

Elyse has gathered information for us about volunteering to judge, mentor, or otherwise support local science fairs:

In middle school and high school, I was a science fair kid. Not only did participating in science fairs expose me to independent research, it gave me opportunities to meet older students and professionals in my field and benefit from their support and mentorship. Whether you were a science fair kid yourself or not, working with middle and high school science students as a volunteer science fair judge can be a great way to give back to the educational community and to connect with students looking for mentorship and advice (and to have fun!). As women in science it is particularly important to represent our community in these types of settings and show future scientists that being a woman in science is awesome.

Being a judge is not the only way to get involved with science fairs – they always need volunteers to help with every aspect of the event. Both judge and volunteer registration are typically done online.

I am judging the middle school division this year at my former school in Oregon, but there are a lot of opportunities to get involved as a judge or other volunteer locally in Washington State. Check them out below.

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**Fairs affiliated with the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (winners of these regional fairs will go on to compete at the international level):**

Washington State Science and Engineering Fair : March 30 and 31, 2012 at Bremerton High School in Bremerton, WA.
Sign up to judge here
Sign up to volunteer here

South Sound Regional Science Fair : March 24, 2012 at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA.
For more information contact fair director Steve Colgan, colgansj[at]plu[dot]edu

Mid-Columbia Regional Science and Engineering Fair : March 8, 2012 at the Columbia Center Mall in Kennewick, WA. Judge and volunteer links are on the homepage.

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**Other local events (not affiliated with ISEF):**

Student Bio Expo : May 24, 2012 at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, WA.
Judging information is here

The Bio Expo is sponsored by The Northwest Association for Biomedical Research (NWABR), an organization that has many, many opportunities to get involved as a volunteer as a judge, advisor, or presenter. Make sure to check them out.

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**If you want to drive down to Oregon:**

Northwest Science Expo : March 23, 2012 at Portland State University in Portland, OR.
There are also several regional fairs that are always in need of judges (perhaps even more so) listed here.
Judging and volunteer registration for NWSE and all of the affiliated fairs is handled through the same process at this page