by Dr. Michael Kienzler
Assistant Professor
UConn Chemistry
 
Dr. Fatma Selampinar
UConn ECE Faculty Coordinator for Chemistry
Associate Professor in Residence UConn Chemistry

On May 18th, the UConn Chemistry Department hosted the May ECE Lab Day (MELD) for students taking UConn Chemistry at their high schools. UConn Chemistry opened its doors to almost 125 high school students from Berlin, New Britain, Norwich Free Academy, O. H. Platt, and The Woodstock Academy at the UConn Storrs Campus. MELD was coordinat­ed by the UConn Early College Experience Program Office in partnership with UConn ECE Faculty Coordinator, Dr. Fatma Selampinar and Assis­tant Professor in Chemistry, Dr. Michael Kienzler. The event started with a presentation by Dr. Kienzler on a surprising phenomenon for a select group of molecules—a process called photoswitching. The lengthy Q&A session after the presentation showed the remarkable interest from high school stu­dents on the topic. Next, the students transitioned to the hands-on activities where they split into groups and went to six undergraduate teaching labora­tories. In the labs they did a set of experiments designed by Dr. Kienzler and supervised by graduate students, to learn more about photoswitches. Small groups of high school students synthesized a bright red azobenzene dye and then recorded the ultra-violet/visible spectrum for their molecules. At the same time, students learned about thin-layer chromatography and used this chemical separation method to observe photoswitching of an azobenzene after shining light on it.
 
The event enabled the high school students to have a hands-on laboratory experience on the UConn campus and provided opportunities for students who are interested in doing research of their own to communicate and connect with a research faculty member, Dr. Michael Kienzler, and research graduate students.
 

Feedback from the Instructors was inspirational and provided confirmation of the true benefit to the student participants:

“My students were raving about the quality of the presentation and correlated lab experience. They were inspired to ponder the connections between their own understanding and the concept of photoswitches.” – Brendan Wilkosz, Berlin High School

“The students and I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation and the lab experience! The event was well orga-nized and hands-on which is most engaging for the students.” – Manila Mathur, New Britain High School

“I can say that my students were excited by the new (to them) subject matter in the lab experiment and inspired by being at the University and in a college setting, if only for a day. We will now finish our school year with renewed enthusiasm thanks to the UConn trip!” – Donna Kaiser, Stamford High School

“It was fantastic! The students thoroughly enjoyed it. I’m just sorry I couldn’t have convinced the others in my class to sign up for the UConn ECE program, because I know they would have loved it as well.” – Nike Agman, Enfield High School
 

By Christopher Todd | Body and participant data by Cyndee McManaman, CT History Day Regional Coordinator

On a brisk Saturday at the onset of UConn’s spring break, over 200 students accom­panied by family, friends and educators descended upon UConn’s Storrs Campus to participate in the Connecticut History Day’s Mansfield/Storrs Regional Contest. Organized by the Connecticut Democra­cy Center, in partnership with the De­partment of History at UConn as well as UConn’s Office of Early College Programs, Connecticut History Day (CHD) success­fully returned to in-person on the Storrs campus after a three-year hiatus during the Covid pandemic.

Connecticut History Day

Connecticut History Day is an affiliate program of National History Day (NHD) which annually engages nearly 5,000 middle and high school students in histor­ical research, interpretation, and creative expression through project-based learning. As stated by the CHD, the program seeks to bring students, teachers, museums, and scholars together to support young peo­ple as they engage in history. Led by the Connecticut Democracy Center, CHD is presented with major funding and partner­ship support from CT Humanities.
 
CHD offers a wide array of free resources for teachers and students to assist them with the History Day process, including:

• Teacher Handbook (English and Spanish)
• Student Handbook (English and Spanish)
• Educator Workshops
• In-class student workshops
• Digital resources for research and writing

 
Mansfield/Storrs Regional Competition
 
Throughout the Northeastern Con­necticut Region, 23 teachers repre­senting 27 schools brought History Day into their classrooms during the 2022-2023 school year. The North­eastern region supported 536 of the statewide 4670 school-level partici­pants, with 224 students attending the Mansfield/Storrs Regional Contest at UConn on Saturday, March 11th. In all, CHD held 6 regional contests around the state with the state con­test held at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) on May 6th. As 47 Connecticut students head to Univer­sity Maryland – College Park this June for the National Contest, 22 of them are students from the Northeastern Region.
 
Because of the unique design of CHD, teachers have the flexibility of using the History Day program in a format that meets their diverse needs: inte­grated into the content area or hon­ors/enrichment curriculum or as an after-school activity or club. Students have the flexibility of working alone or in a small group to create a project in one of five formats: documentary, exhibit, historical paper, dramatic per­formance, or a website. The students select a topic that interests them and then use the annual theme as a lens through which to view and analyze their research and frame their projects.
 

 
While at the Mansfield/Storrs Region­al Contest, CHD teachers Dr. Matt Cieslowski (UConn AMST 1201:  Seminar in America Studies) and Ian Webster (UConn HIST 1501 & 1502: US History to 1877 & Since 1977; HRTS 1007: Intro to Human Rights) from Manchester High School were recognized as this year’s recipients of the Patricia Behring History Day Teacher of the Year Award-Senior Division for Connecticut. Patricia Behring was a longtime benefactor of National History Day, and each affiliate selects a teacher for the Junior and Senior divisions to then compete for the honor of becoming recognized as the National History Day Teacher of the Year at the national contest in June.
 
It was wonderful to support the return of CHD’s Mansfield/Storrs Regional Contest to the Storrs UConn campus. All the hard work and planning by participants, families and program staff alike translated into an amazing day for CHD. Who better to share some highlight than the participants themselves.

 
Comments from students at the Mansfield Regional Contest:

 
“The thing I liked best about the Re­gional Contest was that I got to be an expert on a topic I had a lot of inter­est in. I truly feel like I know a large amount of information regarding my topic and am happy to have this knowl­edge that really no other experience could provide me with.”

 
“I thought that it was really fun to be a part of something that so many people were invested in and took so much pride in being a part of this contest.”

 
“The thing that I liked best about the contest is that I got to do a project on a topic of my choosing.”

 
Comments from parents at the Mansfield Regional Contest:

 
“She gained significant research and writing experience, honed her time management skills, speaking with judges was a good public speaking experience.”

“Great learning and growing experience! An overall beneficial experience in character building.”

Comments from teachers at the Mansfield Regional Contest:

 
“History Day offers a variety of academic challenges for students. Developing a long-term, well-researched project is quite a daunting task for students who often have been asked [at best] to complete a ‘research’ project over the course of a few weeks. Scheduling time to work on a project over a few months’ time and meeting deadlines for registration, paper­work upload and finally project submission is an excellent learning experience for all participants.”

 
“Participation in History Day enhanced their research skills and attention to detail in formal academic work; challenged them to reach higher standards for their work.”

 
Comments from judges at the Mansfield Regional Contest:

 
“As a future teacher, I found it a great experience not only the judging but also seeing the students work, and talking with other professionals in History, and hearing not only their approach to judging but what they do in their work and their experiences. It’s a great way to connect with people!”

 
“I am always so impressed by the students’ knowledge, level of commitment, and energy.”

 
UConn ECE is continuously partnering with new UConn academic departments to offer additional UConn courses in the high schools. Here are our most recent:
 
Asian American Studies (Dr. Jason Chang)
• AAAS 2201: Introduction to Asian American Studies
A multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary introduction to major themes in Asian American Studies. Concepts of identity and community, migration and labor histories, Asians and the law, representations of Asians in visual and popular culture, gender issues, interracial and interethnic relations, and human rights.
 
 
Agricultural and Resource Economics (Dr. Emma Bojinova)
• ARE 2210: Essentials of Accounting and Business
An analysis of basic business principle, fundamentals, and concepts for agribusiness entrepreneurs.
 
 
Computer Science and Engineering (Mr. David Strimple)
• CSE 1010: Introduction to Computing for Engineers
Introduction to computing logic, algorithmic thinking, computing processes, a programming language and computing environment. Knowledge obtained in this course enables use of the computer as an instrument to solve computing problems. Representative problems from science, mathematics, and engineering will be solved.
 
 
Communication (Dr. Svetlana Kalnova)
• COMM 1000: The Process of Communication
A study of modern communication theories and principles useful in understanding how you affect and are affected by others through communication. Methods to develop your communication skills, the role of technology and media in various aspects of daily life.
• COMM 1100: Principles of Public Speaking
Theory and performance in public speaking: methods for organizing presentation and delivery skills, over coming anxiety of speaking in public; audience analysis; maximizing message impact; professional presentation skills; evidence; listening and speech evaluation.
 
 
English (Dr. Tom Deans)
• ENGL 3082: Writing Center Practicum
Introduction to Writing Center pedagogy, theory and research methods. Intended primarily for students staffing UConn ECE Partner School Writing Centers. Students taking this course will be assigned a grade of S (satisfactory) or U (unsatisfactory).
 
 
Earth Sciences (Dr. Robert Thorson)
• ERTH 1000E: The Human Epoch: Living in the Anthropocene
Introduction to geoscience focusing on human activities as agents of geologic change. Examines human planetary processes in our current epoch, the Anthropocene. Provides a novel frame for contemporary environmental issues such as climate change, sustainability, mass extinctions, land use, and waste disposal.
• ERTH 2800: Our Evolving Atmosphere
An introduction to atmospheric science, including a history of the field, features of the atmo sphere, weather forecasting, and a geologic history of climate change.

By Sean Frederick Forbes, Ph.D.
Director, Creative Writing Program
UConn English Department

When I learned that the theme of this year’s ECE summer magazine was going to be “Growth Mindset: Challenging the Status Quo,” I nodded in approval. For any writer, especially a poet, it’s important to consider the role that a healthy “growth mindset” plays in the writing process. Every time one writes a poem, an essay, a text message, or even a grocery list, one is learning to write all over again. Writing a villanelle requires an understanding of the way repeated alternating refrains and a specific end rhyme scheme are employed to convey a complex narrative to the reader/listener versus texting one’s sibling to ask for a huge favor which requires one to think about effective and persuasive phrasing. The writer adapts to the nuances and limitations of each writing form, and in turn, the writer is growing by questioning and challenging the norms set before them. It’s the poet’s exuberant curiosity coupled with the impulse to take risks that allows for creative thought and expression.

My fellow judges, Sophie Buckner and Dan Healy, (both PhD candidates in the English department and creative writers), and I selected three poetry packets by Grace Dehnel, McKena Clemons, and Natalie Crowley, as the first, second, and third prize winners, respectively. With almost 100 submis­sions for this contest, and no identify­ing information on each packet during the review process, our three winners all happened to be students from Rockville High School. This was very exciting to find out as Mrs. Nordlund, their Rockville High School instructor, was once a Summer Institute fellow for the Connecticut Writing Project housed in the English department at UConn and she’s also a poet herself.

During the reading and deliberation process, Sophie, Dan and I thought carefully and critically about the pre­sentation of the poems in each packet. We considered the ways in which the speaker’s voice establishes tone, and the form and style employed, as well as many other factors. What was most telling to the three of us was that

these three poets were moved by their rum­bustious desires to express themselves in poetic form, and for that we are eternally grateful.
 
In Grace Dehnel’s poem “Air,” the speaker presents the denotative mean­ing of the word “free fall,” and takes on the typography that one would expect to find in an online or print dictionary such as a phonetic pronunciation guide, the part of speech of the word (“free fall” is a verb), and the word’s meaning. Typographically, the poem’s layout is a free fall-esque form that can unsettle the reader ever so slightly. This innovative decision allows the speaker to present a narrative voice to the reader in a most provocative man­ner with lines such as “A gravitational pull--/ intangible & untouchable & yet/doesn’t let you leave does it?” What’s most striking in these lines are the ways in which spacing, notably the large gaps within a line, create a tension within the narrative presented since the speaker breaks free from the constraints of traditional poetic line and stanza breaks expectations.
 
McKena Clemons’ poem “The second month” astonishes the reader with its use of a spare aesthetics juxta­posed with deep-rooted cultural and historical stings about the month of February. In the first few lines, the reader is symbolically exposed to the natural elements associated with a wintery climate—the chilled air, the dead trees, and the muddy slush of too much snow and sometimes rain. Clemons then ends the poem with three thought-provoking lines for the reader to ponder over: The streets are flooded with red hearts but they didn’t leave blood stains. / The shortest month dedicated to love and black bodies. / February is hypocrisy.” These lines can lead the reader to be con­templative and inquisitive about how some months in a calendar year can induce such deep thinking.
 
Natalie Crowley’s poem “Maybe it’s the Maybelline” the speaker confronts feminine beauty standards based on the cosmetics industry and the emotional, physical, and psychological affects and effects of applying mascara to one’s eyelashes. In the first few lines, the speaker informs the reader that in 1872 the first commercial mascara was created: a mixture of “petroleum jelly and coal dust.” In doing so, the reader becomes fixated on the human eye and the drastic and harmful “lengths” one takes in wanting to have allur­ing-looking eyelashes: “Sneaking into my sister’s makeup. / I used her mas­cara. / Got a cyst on my eye.” As one continues to read Crowley’s poem, one engages with the speaker on multiple levels in a succinct yet profoundly substantive style of voice.
 
Listen to Poetry readings