By: Samanyu Bhupalam

IA students are accustomed to being told that they will change the world. And while many of us start locally, Engineering senior Julia Jobmann took the phrase literally. As a member of IA’s Outreach team, she took many of the activities that are done within North Fulton elementary and middle schools to Karansi, Tanzania over the summer. Teaching kids of the 2^nd, 3^rd, 5^th, and 6^th grades in Siha Leadership School, she led them through a weeklong STEM camp that included everything from kaleidoscope making to balloon-powered car racing. These activities engaged students in numerous concepts across the scientific fields, letting students be creative and stretch their critical thinking skills. Julia reflected on the week, saying “it was really awesome hearing all the students had learned in just a few days and how excited they were to share that knowledge with others.”

Finding yourself teaching in Tanzania is an incredibly special opportunity, one that Julia was able to take advantage of through IA’s partnership with an international outreach organization. In the future, Julia hopes that a continued partnership will aid in the construction of a new STEM school in Karansi.

One of Julia’s favorite moments was the celebration on the last day. Each grade was given an opportunity to present what they did that week to the other classes and each student was given a certificate signifying their completion of Siha Leadership School’s first STEM week. She fondly remembers the excitement these students had at being able to share with each other and bring their projects home to show off to their families. “We ended the celebration with STEM certificates for each student and an extra special treat of cake. The students were so excited that they could take their projects home to show their families and were so proud of their certificates!”  Julia feels blessed for the opportunity to go on this experience abroad and hopes to act as an ambassador between IA and the new STEM school, stating “Getting to share what IA Outreach does with SLS was such a cool experience that I am grateful to have been a part of. I am so excited for the future of SLS students as they launch a STEM secondary school in the upcoming years.”