High school students from Knox and surrounding counties joined faculty and staff at the John C. Hodges Library one recent Saturday morning to experience the annual Big Orange STEM Saturday (BOSS). More than 100 scholars were invited to participate in two of seven sessions led by UT student groups or faculty members on topics such as Mario Kart and Artificial Intelligence skills, to the Artemis Program and NASA plans to explore Earth’s moon. This year’s theme was “The Future is Now,” which was echoed in the exhibitor session with a robotic dog, virtual reality goggles and medical simulations.

BOSS attendees were led through an engaging escape room scenario as part of the keynote presentation. This event was led by educator Tiffany Collins, who focused on lifelong learning, as well as one of their peers, Kirah Colston, an 11th grader at Oak Ridge High School. The activity combined self-discovery with essential life skills, unlocking valuable insights into goal-setting, grit, resilience and growth mindset.

In addition to the presentations, exhibitions and keynote address, students also experienced a mainstay of college life: a trip to the cafeteria for lunch.

BOSS is an annual conference for students in UT’s Education Research and Opportunity Center (ERO), which supports outreach services that help students overcome social, academic, financial, and cultural barriers in higher education. The vision for BOSS is to bring information on STEM careers and exposure to university life to historically underrepresented populations, and get students excited about STEM and being a VOL. This is the program’s 14th year.