Empowering Young Scientists

“He bent over backwards to make sure I felt included in the group. All of a sudden, science felt like a possibility for me. If we can get other kids considering science as something that is possible for them, then the world is open to them.”

Jennifer Weinberg-Wolf was the only girl in her third grade rocket science club. More specifically, she was the only girl who had ever joined the third grade rocket science club.

As soon as she did, she made up her mind: she would become a scientist. Now an assistant professor of physics and astronomy, Weinberg-Wolf also hopes to make science accessible to elementary school students, just as her third grade teacher did for her.

With Carolina’s physics and astronomy department, Weinberg-Wolf organized Science is Awesome, an event aimed at encouraging kids to consider STEM fields early on. Nearly 300 fourth-grade students from local elementary schools visited campus for a day of experiments, team challenges and gravity-defying fun.

Read the complete Carolina Story…

This is story number 46 in the Carolina Stories 225th Anniversary Edition magazine.

Related Stories


Restore a Watershed, Protect an Ecosystem

Ask a Professor: Rada Petric

UNC Coach’s Legacy Cemented Forever