Let’s Experiment

AROUND CAMPUS

Science is always the solution for Gage Fowlkes ’22. And the bond he has created with Kennedy Packer ’23 cannot be broken. The duo launched a Chemistry Club for students in grades 7-8 under the supervision of Mark Lichaj, Upper School Chemistry Teacher, and Jamie Ringgenberg, Middle School Science Teacher. Fowlkes and Packer shared chemistry experiments with students through club gatherings.

The experiments were designed to engage and challenge students to think differently about science. Fowlkes and Packer provided a sampling of demonstrations across the disciplines within chemistry, including forensic, analytic, organic and inorganic chemistry, as well as photo and electrochemistry and the chemistry of fluorescence, fire and paint. The club was a blend of hands-on activities that kept the middle schooler safety variable in mind, and leader-led demonstrations that featured more intricate activities, such as thermite reactions or electroplating metals.

“These activities are fascinating on every level of understanding,” Fowlkes said. “I hope the club inspires more middle schoolers to pursue STEM subjects way above their level, reaching past the basics they get in class to the seriously cool things waiting above in college and higher education.”

Gage Fowlkes ’22 and Kennedy Packer ’23 engage Middle School students in an experiment.