Ozarks Science & Engineering Fair

IMPORTANT NOTICE - OSEF 2020 Hello OSEF Teachers, Wow, what a week! Just like where you are, it has been a wild ride the last few days for the OSEF Team. In light of the decisions, policies and procedures being set by the University, we have made the decision for OSEF to be held as a virtual fair. The OSEF Team is very committed to providing you and your students the opportunity to participate in the quality presentation and judging experience that you have come to know in ...Continue reading

It’s time once again for the Ozarks Science & Engineering Fair to request student volunteers to help set up, administer, and take down the Fair. Missouri State University faculty, staff, and advisors have always been the backbone of the Fair, and we’re hoping you will help us again this year by encouraging your students to sign up to volunteer. Here’s what you need to know: 1. The Fair takes place March 24 - 26, at Hammons Student Center (right next door to the Arena). 2. V...olunteer time slots start as early as 9 AM and generally end by 10 PM on Tuesday, 6 PM on Wednesday, and 10 PM on Thursday. 3. Students can sign up on their own at our SignUp Genius page` this allows students to pick the times they want to work, and adjust their schedules as needed. Please emphasize the following to your students: a. Time slots are set up in ONE HOUR increments. It’s okay if they need to come in a little late or leave a little early they just need to sign up for the time slots that most closely meet their availability. b. They should ONLY sign up for the slots they actually want to work we have had students sign up for every POSSIBLE time slot, when they really only want to work a few of those hours. This created a lot of confusion and other problems. c. If they sign up for a spot, they need to SHOW UP. We plan jobs and tasks based on how many students we expect to show up please tell your students we will report anyone who signs up and then fails to appear to either their instructor OR their student organization, whichever is applicable. d. Encourage your students to share this opportunity with their friends in the past, we’ve been approved as a service hours opportunity, and we are also a great public affairs opportunity for students who want to acquire those hours as well. We also accept volunteers from the community they just need to be a minimum of 18 years old. e. We will CLOSE the SignUp Genius page as of midnight, Sunday, March 22th, so they need to sign up sooner rather than later the later they sign up, the fewer time slots will be available. Hours worked for the Fair are typically eligible for service hours. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions and please feel free to forward this to any interested parties. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080C45ACA92FA0FA7-osef3

The 2020 Ozarks Science & Engineering Fair will be held March 24 - 26 at Hammons Student Center on the campus of Missouri State University. The deadline for entering the Fair is Monday, February 24. https://k12science.missouristate.edu/osef.htm

Did You Know... You can donate to the Fair? The Fair survives on donations - everyone connected to the Fair is a volunteer, and all awards and expenses are provided through the generous donations of educational institutions, community organizations, local employers, and members of the public like you. Contributions are given through the auspices of the Missouri State University Foundation, making them tax deductible. You can also sponsor an award - complete the Special Awards form and we'll be happy to work with you!

The Lemelson Early Inventor Prize, sponsored by the Lemelson Foundation and the Society for Science & the Public, celebrates young inventors whose projects exemplify the ideals of inventive thinking. This year, we're proud to award this prize to Carter Meints!

OSEF Science Day: the feature presentation this year will be by Mr. Eric Fuller and focus on Native American culture, foods, and native plants. This topic coincides with the traveling Smithsonian exhibit on display in Meyer Library on the MSU campus - Roots of Wisdom: Native Knowledge, Shared Science. https://blogs.missouristate.edu//2019/01/25/rootsofwisdom/ Come here Mr. Fuller's presentation at 10 AM, then visit the exhibit at Meyer Library.

It's volunteer recruitment time again - we are actively looking for a large number of volunteers to help us with the Ozarks Science and Engineering Fair. The Fair takes place this year on March 26 - 28 at Hammons Student Center on the campus of Missouri State University. This is a great opportunity for volunteers to work directly with middle and high school students, scientists, professionals in the community, and others. For Missouri State University students, volunteerin...g at the Fair can count toward community service hours and/or service learning. We also accept volunteers from other colleges and from the community - the main requirement is that you be 18 years of age or older. If you are interested in volunteering for the Fair, please use our SignUp Genius page at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080c45aca92fa0fa7-osef2. Additional information about the Fair can be found at our website, http://www.k12science.missouristate.edu. Please share this post on your own timelines so we can get the word out to as many people as possible.