Celebrating STEM Virtually: The Bay Area Science Festival During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Jennifer Chu Kaelin,Katherine Nielsen,Sabine Jeske

doi:10.15695/jstem/v4i3.04

Jennifer Chu Kaelin, Katherine Nielsen + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.15695/jstem/v4i3.04

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Abstract

Founded in 2011, the Bay Area Science Festival (BASF), led by the Science & Health Education Partnership (SEP) at UC San Francisco, brings together academic, scientific, corporate and civic groups to develop and lead STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) events for all ages. From 2011-2019, the Festival hosted over 50 events each year, reaching tens of thousands of people. In 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Festival pivoted to a virtual format, offering nearly 150 virtual events over five days. Events included hands-on science experiments, STEM storytimes, live interviews with scientists, demonstrations, behind-the-scenes tours and more. Nearly 18,700 unique users from over 35 countries have logged 82,100 views of Festival events to date. In a post-Festival survey, attendees rated their experience similarly to previous years and over 60% of attendees are interested in attending virtual events even when in-person events are again possible. Like many aspects of our lives, the Bay Area Science Festival will look different in future years as a result of the pandemic: a hybrid Festival made up of virtual and in-person events. While there are great benefits to in-person events, we have also come to better understand the benefits of virtual ones.

Highlights

Over the last decade, science festivals in the United States have experienced significant growth
While each festival is a unique reflection of its home institution and community, science festivals share some common characteristics and goals (Bultitude et al, 2011): (a) they celebrate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); (b) they engage the public with STEM content; (c) they are time-limited events that recur annually or biennially; and (d) they use a common theme or branding to unify their various activities
Science festivals can differ significantly, with budgets varying by a factor of 1,000, geographic reach ranging from a neighborhood to a city to a state, length varying from one day to one month, and staffing ranging from entirely volunteer to several fulltime paid staff (Wiehe, 2014)

Summary

Introduction

Science festivals in the United States have experienced significant growth. Over the course of its first nine years, the Bay Area Science Festival hosted approximately 50 in-person events annually, reaching more than 50,000 people each year.

Results

Conclusion