Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Civil War artifacts will be excavated and sea creatures will be dissected as high school juniors and seniors from across North Carolina participate in Summer Ventures in Mathematics and Science (SVSM) through July 18 at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. The four-week program, which is cost-free to participating academically talented students interested in math and science careers, is funded by the state of N.C.

SVSM students will gain the full college experience as they live on campus while being instructed by UNC Wilmington faculty in the areas of math, science and technology. Ultimately, students will design and implement their own college-level interactive research projects. Every weekday July 7-17, media are invited to capture students building projects and conducting experiments on local beaches and in labs. Highlights include:

1:30 - 3:30 p.m. TODAY, Tuesday, July 7; 1:30 - 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, July 8: Experiments/specimen collection at area beaches

10:30 - 3:30 p.m. TODAY, Tuesday July 7 - Thursday, July 9: Brunswick Town Civil War artifact analysis and testing; physics and technology experiments including pulleys, lasers, EKGs and other models; marine experiments including dissection, testing of samples and coastal mapping

7 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Saturday, July 18 in Dobo Hall: Students will present their research projects to experts

Hands-on photo opportunities and interviews are available for all above activities. Call the below media contact for more details, as schedule is subject to change.

Since 1987, SVSM has been committed to providing intense, hands-on learning through a month long residential program. This year's program is focusing on the areas of marine geography, marine geology, archaeology and physics. Five UNC schools are hosting SVSM programs this year.

Media contact:
Joy Davis, UNCW marketing and communications, 910.916.8603 or davisjc@uncw.edu