University of California, Santa Barbara
 

UCSB  >  INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT  >  COMMUNITY RELATIONS  >  PUBLIC SERVICE DIRECTORY

 
K-12 OUTREACH
UCSB in the Community: A Public Service Directory

DIRECTORY LINKS

Directory Home

Chancellor's Welcome

K-12 Outreach

College Preparation

Professional Development & Training

Community Service

Building Partnerships

Public Lectures & Symposia

Performing Arts

Libraries, Museums, & Galleries

Public Tours & Natural Reserves

Recreation


The QUESTboards Project.The campus sponsors an extensive program of classroom presentations, tours, demonstrations, field trips, musical and dance performances, and other educational outreach efforts for K-12 schools.

For college preparatory information, please see "College Preparation."


Art
  • Artist Residency Program
    Arts & Lectures engages many visiting artists for residencies that - in addition to their public performances - include visits to local elementary and secondary schools, master classes both on and off campus, mini-performances, lecture demonstrations and meet-the-artists discussions. These free and entertaining activities allow for rewarding (sometimes life-changing) interactions.
    Inquiries: Arts and Lectures, 805-893-3382
    Web Site: http://www.artsandlectures.ucsb.edu/
  • University Art Museum School Programs
    The University Art Museum offers guided visits of its permanent collection galleries and special changing exhibitions to elementary, secondary, high school and university students, as well as after school programs and summer camps. Upon request, tours are available Wednesday through Friday between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
    Inquiries: University Art Museum, 805-893-8266
    Web Site: http://www.uam.ucsb.edu/Pages/education.html

Engineering
  • MESA School Program (MSP)
    MESA School Program (MSP), is a pre-college outreach program serving over 900 students (K-12) in Santa Barbara & Ventura Counties. MSP provides activities that encourage students to pursue a college prep academic plan that leads to math based careers. It includes MESA Day competitions, rocket building and launch, SAT Prep workshops, Lego robotic competitions, College tours and Leadership training. MSP is a collaborative program developing and implementing creative outreach initiatives with Early Academic Outreach Program (EAOP) and Puente.
    Inquiries: College of Engineering, 805-893-8347
    Web Site: http://www.engr.ucsb.edu/~mesa-msp

Natural Reserves
  • Carpinteria Salt Marsh Reserve, Carpinteria, California
    The UC Natural Reserve System offers public tours of its Carpinteria Salt Marsh Reserve September through June for adult and student groups. Tours are by appointment only; interested parties should contact the Reserve Director, Dr. Andrew Brooks, at (805) 893-7670 to schedule a tour. All Reserve tours begin at the entrance to the Reserve at the terminus of Estero Way in the City of Carpinteria. Public tours also are offered of the City of Carpinteria's Carpinteria Salt Marsh Nature Park. Tours are led by experienced docent staff every Saturday May through November beginning at 10AM. All tours of the Nature Park begin at the entrance to the Nature Park on Ash Avenue, City of Carpinteria. All tours focus on various aspects of the Marsh's natural habitats, flora, fauna and history. Each year, hundreds of elementary and secondary school students visit this ecologically sensitive area.
    Inquiries: Natural Reserve System Public Education Programs, 805-893-4127
    Web Site: http://nrs.ucop.edu/Carpinteria-Salt-Marsh.htm
  • Sedgwick Reserve, Santa Ynez, California
    Sedgwick Reserve has an active community outreach program, including field trips and special activities for adults and children. Volunteer-led walks and projects interweave life science, earth science, and Chumash history activities with creative writing, sketching, photography, and movement in a magnificent outdoor setting.
    Inquiries: Natural Reserve System Public Education Programs, 805-893-4127
    Web Site: http://nrs.ucop.edu/Sedgwick.htm
  • Valentine Eastern Sierra Reserve, Mammoth Lakes, California
    Valentine Reserve has an ambitious community outreach program. The centerpiece is the Outdoor Science Education Program which hosts field trips from local schools for science lessons by Reserve staff and a summer program of one and two-week classes for kids grades K-7. For adults, the Reserve offers guided walks with thematic talks by professional researchers, short courses, and a community lecture series.
    Inquiries: Natural Reserve System Public Education Programs, 805-893-4127
    Web Site: http://vesr.ucnrs.org

Reading
  • America Reads and America Counts at UCSB
    The Associated Students Community Affairs Board and local school district work together to implement UCSB's response to the national America Reads Challenge program. They select, hire, and train 30-35 UCSB students to be America Reads/Counts tutors. These reading and math tutors work directly with kindergarten through sixth grade students to improve their reading and math proficiency skills.
    Inquiries: Associated Students, 805-893-4296
    Web Site: http://www.finaid.ucsb.edu/Workstudy/
  • Community Affairs Board (CAB) Volunteer Action Center
    By organizing the volunteer efforts of more than 5,000 students annually, the Community Affairs Board aids the community in taking action on key social issues such as poverty, education, individuals with disabilities and the environment. CAB seeks to augment classroom experiences, to create opportunities for career exploration, to connect UCSB to the community in a meaningful way, and to promote the ethics of public service through a variety of community and campus service projects. CAB volunteers give their time to more than 400 local nonprofit agencies and 18 national, state, and local associations including local schools, recreation centers, rehabilitation clinics, museums, nursing homes and much more.
    Inquiries: Associated Students, 805-893-4296
    Web Site: http://as.ucsb.edu/cab/

Science
  • Apprentice Researchers at CNSI
    Through the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) apprentice researchers program, high school juniors and science teachers join with CNSI researchers in their scientific investigations. This program not only emphasizes the doing of science, but also effectively communicates scientific ideas to a variety of audiences.
    Inquiries: California NanoSystems Institute, 805-893-8527
    Web Site: http://education.cnsi.ucsb.edu/ar.html
  • Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration (CCBER)
    The Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration (CCBER) houses over 100,000 plant and animal specimens in the Herbarium, Vertebrate, Invertebrate Collections and Special Collections. We provide opportunities for K-12 academic preparation through our highly regarded Kids in Nature program and special community education programs including a Monday night Restoration Ecology seminar during the academic year. Public service and professional advising help the Center to fulfill its overall mission of increasing understanding of and preserving biodiversity, and training and educating future scientists to carry out these important activities. We offer tours of the animal, plant and special collections and the restored natural areas we manage on the UCSB campus. Please phone 893-2401 for tour information.
    Inquiries: Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, 805-893-2401
    Web Site: http://ccber.lifesci.ucsb.edu
  • Crustal Studies Presentations
    Faculty members and graduate students affiliated with the Institute for Crustal Studies bring the wonders of seismology,natural hazards, global change, and geology from around the world to students at Santa Barbara and Goleta schools. Presentation topics range from general geophysics, Antarctic ice sheets, and Himalayan mountain building to landscape evolution and cutting-edge simulations of major earthquakes along faults.
    Inquiries: Institute for Crustal Studies, 805-893-8231
    Web Site: http://www.crustal.ucsb.edu/ics/outreach/
  • Earth Science K-14 Outreach
    Educators, researchers, and graduate students from the Department of Earth Science offer presentations to local schools. Topics include volcanoes, earthquakes, and fossils. Local students engage in discussions about energy issues, view slides of planets, and take field trips to the Earth Science's extensive Bancroft Mineral Collection.
    Inquiries: College of Letters and Science K-14 Academic Outreach, 805-893-2319
    Web Site: http://www.geol.ucsb.edu/L2/Outreach-FR.html
  • Geography Awareness Week Presentations
    Geography Awareness Week is part of a nationwide effort to enhance elementary and secondary school students' geographical understanding of the world. Faculty and students of the Geography Department offer special presentations to local schools. Topics range from "Cities in Ancient Mexico" and "Rural Life in South Africa" to "Geography of a City" and "Space Shuttle Photography."
    Inquiries: Geography Department, 805-893-3663
    Web Site: http://www.geog.ucsb.edu/
  • Kids Do Ecology
    The National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) partners with Los Marineros, an education program of the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum, to provide the Kids Do Ecology program. Scientists from NCEAS and UCSB work with local fifth graders guiding students through the design, implementation, analysis, and presentation of an ecology experiment. Kids Do Ecology also maintains a website in Spanish and English that provides ecological information and an interactive "Ask An Ecologist" section. The Kids Do Ecology website is accessed by students and teachers globally as well as locally.
    Inquiries: National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, 805-892-2500
    Web Site: http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/nceas-web/kids/
  • Kids in Nature
    Kids in Nature (KIN) is an innovative and highly regarded program designed to enrich the learning experiences of underrepresented and underserved youth in our community. KIN provides fifth-grade students with a year-long dynamic combination of hands-on, inquiry based, classroom ac activities, including Project Budburst and nature journaling, interactive custom-designed computer simulations, and field trips to UCSB's Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, Coal Oil Point Reserve, Arroyo Hondo Preserve and the REEF (Research Experience and Education Facility). KIN provides students in our community with opportunities to observe, engage in, and understand the importance of programs that preserve our ecosystems.
    Inquiries: Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, 805-893-2506
    Web Site: http://ccber.lifesci.ucsb.edu/education/kin
  • Let's Explore Applied Physical Science (LEAPS)
    The LEAPS Graduate Fellowship program is a joint effort of the Santa Barbara School District and UCSB's Physics Department and California Nanosystems Institute. LEAPS is funded by the National Science Foundation to establish collaboration between the LEAPS Fellows, science teachers, and UCSB scientists and engineers in school classrooms, at summer institutes, and through the Internet. The LEAPS Fellows serve as resources and mentors in 8th grade Physical Science and 9th grade Physics classrooms.
    Inquiries: Physics Department, 805-893-8527
    Web Site: http://www.leaps.ucsb.edu/
  • Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement Center (MESA)
    The Santa Barbara Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement Center (MESA) School Program addresses the historically low numbers of disadvantaged and low income students pursuing math based majors in college. MESA provides academic/career awareness and preparation services for secondary students with high interests in math and science. The goal is for every participant to complete four years of college preparatory math and English along with chemistry and physics, and to take the PSAT and SAT I&II before high school graduation. Functions involving students, their families, teachers and staff include: school site meetings and activities, field trips to college campuses, MESA day competitions, Academies, scholarships, and summer programs. Currently, more than 400 senior high school students and nearly 500 junior high school students are enrolled in the Santa Barbara and Ventura County Schools.
    Inquiries: College of Engineering, 805-893-3333
    Web Site: http://www.engr.ucsb.edu/~mesa-msp
  • Oceans Alive at OCTOS!
    The Outreach Center for Teaching Ocean Science (OCTOS) provides research lesson plans and projects for elementary and secondary school teachers, as well as advanced research experiences for university students and professors.
    Inquiries: Marine Science Institute, 805-893-8765
    Web Site: http://www.msi.ucsb.edu/
  • Oceans Alive at Sea!
    MSI's Oceans Alive at Sea Program respresents all our outreach activities taking place on the ocean -- Take a ride on the Floating Lab adventure or get some hands-on ocean research experience.
    Inquiries: Marine Science Institute, 805-893-8765
    Web Site: http://www.msi.ucsb.edu
  • Physics Circus
    The Physics Circus provides a fun and instructive introduction to various aspects of physics. Volunteers visit 2nd-6th grade classrooms and perform a show that covers concepts such as linear and angular momentum, electricity and magnetism, sound, and low temperature phenomena. The Circus is able to bring specialized equipment that may not be available in many schools, particularly in low-income areas. Mini courses are developed in consultation with local area teachers.
    Inquiries: Physics Department, 805-893-3888
    Web Site: http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~circus/
  • QUESTboards
    The QUESTboards project is an innovative way for students to explore concepts of electricity, magnetism, and light. Designed by UCSB engineering students and faculty, QUESTboards are hands-on activity boards, which students and teachers use to investigate circuits, magnets, fiber optics, and lasers. Institute for Quatum and Complex Dynamics loans QUESTboards and accompanying curriculum material.
    Inquiries: Institute for Quantum and Complex Dynamics, 805-893-8527
    Web Site: http://www.iqcd.ucsb.edu/iqcd.htm
  • The REEF Program - Marine Science Institute Tours
    The Research Experience & Education Facility ("The REEF"), located steps from Campus Point Beach, offers visitors marine science activities, touch tank tours and opportunities to get up close and personal with marine life. Open to general public on Saturdays from 11 am - 2 pm -- call for restrictions. >>For more information e-mail: outreach@msi.ucsb.edu
    Inquiries: Marine Science Institute, 805-893-8765
    Web Site: http://www.msi.ucsb.edu/
  • Research Experience for Teachers (RET)
    The Materials Research Laboratory at UCSB sponsors research experience for science teachers who spend six weeks during the summer working in research groups led by MRL researchers. The teachers also meet throughout the academic year and through a second summer to design ways of translating this research experience into classroom science curricula.
    Inquiries: Materials Research Laboratory, 805-893-7928
    Web Site: http://www.mrl.ucsb.edu/mrl/outreach/educational/RET/
  • Science Line
    Science Line, an innovative Internet education program sponsored by the Materials Research Laboratory (MRL) in the College of Engineering at UCSB, aims to link local schools in the tri-county area with university scientists. Teachers and K-12 students submit questions about life, earth, and physical science via the Internet, and UCSB scientists answer them within one week.
    Inquiries: Materials Research Laboratory, 805-893-7928
    Web Site: http://www.scienceline.ucsb.edu
  • Zoological Collections
    The Zoological Collection contains over 32,000 avian, mammalian, herpetological and fish specimens from around the world, with special emphasis on the vertebrates of the central and southern coast of California. The Mammalogy Collection of the UCSB Museum of Systematics and Ecology includes representatives of 172 species of mammals, distributed among 75 genera, 34 families, and 12 orders. Most of the specimens are skins and skulls. The collection also includes partial or complete skeletons for many species. A list of the mammal specimens in the collection is available. Tours are available by appointment.
    Inquiries: Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, 805-893-2401
    Web Site: http://ccber.lifesci.ucsb.edu/collections/zoological/

Social Science


[RETURN TO TOP]  


SEARCH THE DIRECTORY

Table of Contents

Index By Program

Index By Department


DEPARTMENT LINKS

Community Relations

Speakers Bureau

Public Service Directory

Support Group Events

Key Staff Contacts

Copyright © The Regents of the University of California, All Rights Reserved.
UCSB, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara CA 93106 (805) 893-8000
Site Map About Our Site Terms of Use Contact Us Text-Only Accessibility
Last Modified May 4, 2009