Why Was THA Community STEM Festival Different From All Others?

Snake handling

Earlier this month, Tucson Hebrew Academy, a private K—8 school in Arizona, presented its first-ever Community STEM Festival.

Since attending the event, I have talked with people who were also part of the festival, both exhibitors and visitors, and universally I have heard words like amazing and terrific used to describe their experience that day.

So what set this event apart from others that I have been to and/or planned?

My thought this morning is that it was the intimacy of the event that set a completely different tone from the typical atmosphere of STEM events. There is often a frenetic feel at STEM events, while the THA festival was quiet and relaxed.

Another big difference is that the setting for the event really lent itself to creating an intimate feeling. Rather than setting up exhibitors in one large room, tables were arrayed throughout the courtyard of the school.

If you were part of the STEM festival, either as someone who attended or as someone who exhibited, what are your thoughts on this? What do you think set this event apart from typical STEM events? What made this festival different from all others?

We need the answer so that the magic can be replicated and repeated at other outreach events!