DVSC Program Mentors and Judges

The Delaware Valley Science Council welcomes area scientists participating as project mentors and judges for our program. Register here.

Call for Project Mentors

DVSC mentors should have broad STEM background and have sufficient time availability to engage interactively – primarily through messaging to and from STEM Wizard – with their assigned project team (or teams).

Mentors hold scientific backgrounds and are recruited from the community, industry and academia to guide students in thinking critically about their STEM project, and in working as a team, to generate their own solutions for the benefit of their communities. 

  • Mentors and judges will attend a briefing session via Zoom that includes STEMWizard orientation
  • Note that mentors can also do limited research and in turn call in experts to assist with ideas
  • Mentors will use the STEM Wizard communication process (rather than direct emails to students) to ensure that the team’s sponsor / teacher is directly involved and aware of messages, and that there is a log/record of interactions
  • Ensure that teams understand the program goals, rules, and due dates, and answer any questions they have (can refer program questions they can’t answer to our program team)
  • Review the team’s initial approach statement and provide thoughtful suggestions and context that may help in their understanding of the challenge and direction. This should not be a ‘how to’ but simply to try to steer them away from pitfalls and towards success.
  • Ask questions to assist the teams in arriving at specific topic area for project (can use our suggested sub-topic areas if necessary).
  • Be positive and encouraging. Praise progress.
  • Continue to check in at least every two weeks through the two-month performance period and in the final couple of weeks to ensure progress is ongoing and remove any barriers. Be willing to view their final outputs only if requested. 

Call for Judges for the DVSC STEM Challenge

  • Judges are needed following the submission of project deliverables to evaluate team work in the form of a slide presentation and brief video / multi-media product against a rubric, offering feedback and ratings – along with encouragement and recommendations – to project teams.
  • Mentors can elect to also be a judge but will not be assigned to evaluate projects for which they were a mentor

Sign up to be considered as a mentor or judge here.

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