STEM Mentorship (Gr. 6-12)

STEM Mentorship Lab is like a field trip that comes to you every week. Real scientists, engineers, and other STEM professionals will visit your school and help you do an awesome project. One of these adults will be your mentor and your biggest supporter, helping you learn about a topic of your choice.

About STEM Mentorship Lab

Our students do great work. Mentees in this program win thousands of dollars in prizes each year from the rochesterschools Regional STEM Fair, Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair, and eCybermission competitions.

Our students are supported by our community. Mentors are often young professionals and university students who have fun helping their mentees. They are recruited by Oraculi, a local non-profit organization founded by rochesterschools Public Schools alumni. Read more.

Our mentors are great at research AND great at relating to students. This article published by Mayo Clinic highlights one of our award-winning mentors. Read more.

Our students are financially supported. Oraculi offers need-based scholarships to mentees. These scholarships cover project supplies and registration fees for the rochesterschools Regional STEM Fair and the Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair.

Locations

Online - Available for all students in grades 6-12. Meeting dates determined by mentors and mentees.

Dakota Middle School - After school weekly

John Adams Middle School - After school on Tuesdays

Kellogg Middle School - TBD (will be update once we have information) 

Willow Creek Middle School - TBD (will be update once we have information) 

What Students Say About Their Mentors

"It's a really fun experience. You get to try new things. Especially at first, we weren't really interested in science, but after we joined, it was pretty fun, especially with the mentors encouraging us." - Student at Kellogg Middle School

"I think the best moment was when we really dived deep into our project and we really got to test it. Because those were the things I've never done before. I think my mentor's first-person experience really helped me feel more confident in this zone." - Student at John Adams Middle School

"[I enjoyed] the human conversations that we had with them. The normal conversations like, how was your day, what did you guys do, how do you feel about this? We're talking about sports and stuff like that too. Just normal conversations like that where you can relate with a person, with a mentor. Just having a fun personality. It was just very fun to hang out with them and talk for a couple of hours." - Student at John Marshall High School

Save the Date

The rochesterschools Regional STEM Fair will take place on Friday, February 26th, 2027. Participants in STEM Mentorship Lab are encouraged to share their projects at this event. Many students say that the best part of the experience is sharing their work with their peers and members of the scientific community.