Cracking the code

Posted by Arlyssa Becenti | Jul 21, 2016 | Education |

ASU engineering camp challenges Navajo youth in math, sciences, and creativity

Navajo Times | Adron Gardner
Ganalita Lopez, left, of Na’neelzheiin Ji Olta’, carefully stacks dominoes with Carl Werito as they assemble a project blending science and the life story of a Code Talker during a Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math camp sponsored by Arizona State University July 14 in Tse Bonito, New Mexico.

TSE BONITO, N.M.

As a seventh grade student from St. Michaels Indian School, Colby Begay hopes to one day study constructional engineering at Texas Tech.

But, in the mean time he is honing his math and science skills to better prepare himself for the challenge of being admitted into the top-notch school by attending a one-week Arizona State University STEAM Machines engineering camp at Navajo Department of Transportation.

“I’ve heard of STEAM (an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) so I decided I wanted to try it for the first time and it’s fun and I want to do it again next year,” said Begay.

Since 2012, Shawn Jordan, an assistant professor of engineering education in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University has brought this camp to Navajo.

“Dr. Jordan is the founder of the program and he does a lot of outreach and research to help Navajo children realize their potential as engineers,” said contract teacher Joolz Fernandez-Yonge. “There’s a lot of trying to connect people who are in the field … and showing the kids there is so much they can do for the Nation.”

The week-long camp was focused on middle-school-aged students, who come from different schools across the reservation, and they were given the task of picking a theme for their group projects. Their theme was the life of a Navajo Code Talker and in order to tell the story they would have to work together and construct what they thought up.

“They put things that they associate with that theme into a single story,” explained Fernandez-Yonge. “Each group is doing a portion of the (Code Talker’s) life. The task for the project is to have a flag flown.”