Weather 101 - Come to Summer Weather Camp

The camps (described below in more detail) will be held in El Paso, TX; Greensboro, NC; Jackson, MS; Mayaguez, PR; New York City, NY; and Washington, DC. Some camps are for high school students; others are for middle schoolers. Some camps are residence-based (students actually live in college dorms); others serve commuting students. Some camps run for one week; others two. All camps described here (except for the day camps run by the Weather Museum in Houston, TX {not currently affiliated directly with our program} are free (or only charge a nominal fee) for students. However, transportation to or from each camp remains the responsibility of each participant.

These camps, operating under the name CAREERS (Channeling Atmospheric Research into Educational Experiences Reaching Students), are supported by NOAA, numerous private sector companies and individuals, and various governmental agencies. They have been established because there is a need to ensure a stream of quality scientists, representing a wide diversity of groups (including those traditionally underrepresented in these disciplines). Ultimately, the goal is to help these students enter the pipeline for future careers in the atmospheric and related sciences.

CAREERS camps are designed to capitalize on strong student interest in atmospheric and related sciences and help attendees gain science knowledge, communication skills and team-building experiences. While at camp, students are engaged in hands-on activities, field experiments, seminars, tours of research facilities, workshops and other activities that expand their knowledge of atmospheric sciences, weather and forecast models and environmental instrumentation. Click here to see some images of campers "in action!" Experience shows that for campers with a high interest in the weather, work actually becomes fun!

Camps are also designed to showcase the myriad of career choices that await them upon completion of college. Some career choices currently include operational forecaster, researcher, TV broadcaster, numerical modeler, climatologist, forest fire meteorologist, aviation meteorologist, hydrologist, water management specialist, air quality meteorologist, space weather forecaster, emergency manager, energy use analyst, alternative energy consultant, forensic meteorologist, combat meteorologist, instrument designer, computer modeler, science writer and educator.

Each camp (there will be at least six sites operating this summer, with additional camps slated for summer 2011 and beyond) will develop its own overall focus, often keyed to its unique geographical, meteorological, hydrological and/or oceanographic factors and research interests. Some camps (such as the one at Howard University in Washington, DC) have access to a greater concentration of scientists for visiting the camp and sharing. But, other sites take advantage of outdoor opportunities either by camping (City University of New York) or boating (University of Puerto Rico).

And, while the camp experience is exceptional unto itself, faculty and staff continue to interact with campers throughout the year. Some campers have participated in various school, county and state science fairs; one presented a research paper at the NOAA Educational Partnership Program; two contributed to legal cases involving weather; and two are writing weather-based articles for their school newspaper and/or online weather forecast sites. Faculty have mentored campers throughout the year as campers determine college pathways and career choices.

Applications for all camps are now being accepted. For more information, please check out the main camp web site.

All applications are being sent to a single clearinghouse address, so please be sure to indicate your preferred choice(s) for camps.

Applications that include transcripts, letter of interest and recommendation letters will receive fastest consideration.

For more information about the camps, please check out each site's web site and/or contact the camp director at each location:

University of Texas - El Paso
Rosa Fitzgerald - rfitzgerald@utep.edu - 915-747-7530 [o]
Physics Department
Physical Science Building
500 W. University Avenue
El Paso, TX 79902
web site under development
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 12 - 16, 2010 (commuting)

North Carolina A & T
Keith Schimmel - schimmel@ncat.edu - 336-285-2329 [o]
Energy & Environmental Systems
301 Gibbs Hall
Greensboro, NC 27411
http://noaaiset.org/opportunities/summercamps.php
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 19 - 23, 2010 (commuting)
http://www.natsci.org/classes/summerclasses2010.html
Grade levels: rising 5^th to 7^th grade in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 5 - 9 and August 2 - 6, 2010 (commuting)
web site under development

Jackson State University
Loren White - loren.d.white@jsums.edu - 601-979-3630 [o]
Department of Physics, Atmospheric Science and Geoscience
Jackson, MS 39217
http://weather.jsums.edu/~white/weathercamp/index.htm
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: June 7 - 11, 2010 (commuting)

University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez Campus
Yasmin Detres - yasmin.detres@upr.edu- 787-899-2048 x 283
Marine Sciences
P.O. Box 9013
Mayaguez, PR 00681
http://bio-optics.uprm.edu/
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: June 6 - 12, 2010 (commuting)

City University of New York
Brian Vant-Hull - brianvh@ce.ccny.cuny.edu - 212-650-5815 [o]
NOAA - CREST
Steinman Hall - Room 123
Covenent and 140th Street
New York, NY 10031
http://crest.ccny.cuny.edu/outreach/weathercamp/index.html
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 11 - 24, 2010 (commuting)

Howard University
Vernon Morris - vmorris@Howard.edu/ - 202-865-8536
NOAA Center for Atmospheric Sciences
HURB-1
1840 7th Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
http://ncas.howard.edu/outreach/WeatherCamp/index.html
Grade levels: rising sophomore, junior and senior in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 12-25, 2010 (residence)
Grade levels: rising 7^th & 8^th grades in fall 2010
Camp dates: July 26 - 30, 2010 (commuting)