Summer Recap: Meet Meaghan

This summer, we were fortunate to have to talented and passionate individuals from the Summer Ladders AmeriCorps Program join the SCI team to support our mission – to engage and inspire Iowans along their journey of lifelong science learning.

This unique program places individuals in summer programs across the state of Iowa each year where they are charged with developing high quality activities and facilitating those activities with high need youth in an effort to mitigate the summer learning loss experienced by some youth.

Thank you, Meaghan, for your support this summer!

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Tell us about yourself.

I am from Waverly, Iowa. I am currently a junior at the University of Iowa majoring in Biomedical Engineering. My passions are running, reading and quilting.

How did you get involved in the AmeriCorps Summer Ladder Program?

I got involved with the AmeriCorps after a high school classmate’s sister talked about how great her experience was with Green Iowa.

What have you been working on at SCI this summer?

I have been working on prototyping STEM workshops that will be taken on the road outside the Des Moines area.

What has been one of your most memorable moments from your time at SCI?

One of my most memorable experiences was with a youth who was struggling with circuits. He was frustrated almost to tears over how hard it seemed. After having him try again and again, he was able to get the paper circuit to work. From there, he then created much larger and more complex circuits without any help. It really showed the value of pushing through struggles - no matter the age. It also was heartwarming to see the change in confidence he had.

What is your goal for the future?

To graduate from the University of Iowa and then pursue a career in vaccine and disease research.