Full steam ahead on Fremont’s third annual Spring into STEAM event

By Staff Writers Michelle Qu & Ekasha Sikka

The third annual Spring into STEAM event invited the youth of Fremont to participate in an evening of interactive learning, hosted by the City of Fremont in partnership with Cargill, a sustainable agriculture-business company. The event, held at 5-8 p.m. on March 21, featured a youth science fair, food vendors, and booths by local science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) organizations. The Fremont Downtown Events Center was energized by Spring into STEAM, which brought a sense of curiosity and engagement to attendees.

The event opened with a speech given by Mayor Raj Salwan, thanking the organizers of the event and the sponsor, Cargill. Surrounding the event center were booths arranged by the Fremont Council Parent Teacher Organization, offering crafts and experiments for young attendees, including a balloon and skewer demonstration. Attendees could also go inside to explore other hands-on experiments and interact with industry professionals. Exhibitions included booths held by city organizations, such as Fremont Nature Learning Center’s display on native plants and Alameda County Water District’s (ACWD) hydrogen ion demonstration. Local education businesses and nonprofits were also running activities, like Fremont Creates’ booth about the fine arts. The Lawrence Berkeley Hall of Science, a public science center, was another notable participant, offering hands-on building activities in a room separate from the rest of the event. Despite being advertised for elementary and middle school students, the event also hosted several booths that offered volunteer and job opportunities for young adults. 

The Spring into STEAM event allowed exhibitors to promote their services and mission to the community. “This is just such a great opportunity to engage and interact with students and families and the parents and our community … I really hope that it inspires them to learn about … different services that are available to the community, like the ACWD,” ACWD Public Affairs Specialist Renee Gonzalez said. 

The FUSD science fair showcase occupied an entire room, with project boards grouped in triads on individual tables draped with tablecloths. By the entrance, the City of Fremont’s booth passed out an interactive science notebook containing a science fair scavenger hunt for the younger attendees. A slideshow depicting pictures of the elementary-school-level participants next to their projects played on the wall at the front of the room. Project topics ran the gamut from soil erosion and basketball physics to potato batteries and trash collectors. Several fair participants could be seen standing by their project boards, explaining their experimentation processes to passersby. “The event itself is amazing. A lot of nice projects to look at. [I] feel happy when kids are showcasing their STEM abilities and … putting their knowledge into actual experiments.” Attendee Anitha Nagaraja said. 

The Spring into STEAM event has more than doubled its popularity in its three years of running, and event organizers hope to continue its growth. The City of Fremont currently aims to support events that introduce children to academic subjects. “We’re trying to encourage more of these kinds of events. We’re doing more recreation programs so that more people are involved because we know that that’s the future,” Fremont Mayor Raj Salwan said.